The Horse and The King
by wildrook
Summary: Ranma/YGO/GX/5D's/TMoHS/SM/EEnE crossover with more pending. Ranma and Jaden meet near the outskirts of Nerima, and the butterfly effect kicks in...more ways than one.
1. Best of Both Worlds

The Horse and the King

Chapter 1: The Meeting of the Best of Both Worlds. Welcome to Nerima, Jaden Yuki!

(A/n: Quick thought: Ranma ½ is made by Rumiko Takahashi while YuGiOh was made by Kazuki Takahashi. I'm wondering…could they be related?)

----

Everyone knows the story of the origin of Duel Monsters. However, it's everyone in Domino City, Japan, which many of their stories take place in. Our story doesn't take place there OR in Duel Academy.

It begins with a young man walking into a district of Tokyo, backpack in hand and with a few personal ghosts walking alongside him.

"That is the LAST time I take directions from someone who gets lost in his own house," he muttered. "And he thinks he's in New Zeland. Now I don't even know where I am right now!"

"You didn't take the fact that his aura was odd?" a female voice said, walking next to him. The woman (or is she?) appeared beside him.

"Odder than Honest's own? I thought he was someone who was knee-deep in depressants."

The young man had a combination of brown and orange hair and had a red blazer over his shirt. The woman alongside him was purple and had her right eye amber-colored with her other eye the color green.

"Of course, you can only sense Shadow Magic. I haven't taught you the aspect of ki-sensing."

"I know, Yubel. However, I don't think anyone who would be able to do so would fall out of the sky."

In response to that, a man with a pigtail had fallen out of the sky, much to the surprise of Yubel and the young man.

Pressing his luck, he then said, "Full-course meals don't fall out of the sky." Yubel face-faulted.

"I don't think this guy should even be whole," she replied.

"You don't think he fell from a plane like in Con Air, do you?"

In response, the man got up. "She gets more violent every day," he said to himself. "That uncute tomboy!" He then realized that he had spectators. "Uh…if you're looking for my father or have someone who he engaged me to, I'm not in the mood to fight to the death."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," the kid said. "I just arrived here after being misled by a guy with a tiger-striped bandanna."

The man nodded. "That, I'm relieved at."

"How can you be so casual about that?" Yubel asked him.

Instead of the no response that she usually gets when she asks that, the unexpected happened:

"Story of my life, lady," he said, much to the shock of both the spirit and young man. "Name's Ranma Saotome. Sorry about that."

Recovering from his shock, the kid replied, "Jaden Yuki, and this is Yubel. How can you be able to see her?"

"I made contact with spirits before, kid. Some of them weren't human, and she's no exception. As for how I'm casual about it, let's just say that the man with the bandanna and I have danced that particular waltz before."

Yubel, however, gave Ranma an intensive look. "Well, whatever the case, you seem to have the same aura as he did. I'm assuming you're suffering from a curse?"

During the half-hour walk to the dojo Ranma was staying in, Jaden and Yubel were listening to Ranma's training trip story. Near the forest entrance, both man and spirit had agreed on one thing.

"You want me to sic Haou on him?" Jaden asked Yubel.

"Forget Haou," Yubel said. "I want a piece of that fat bastard myself. What kind of idiot sells his own flesh and blood to fill his stomach?"

Ranma sighed. "Well, we're here. Brace yourselves for my fiancee and her mallet, an angry father-in-law-that-won't-be-possible, and a drunken panda."

Jaden nodded and Yubel had growled, but she knew that they wouldn't have the ability to see Duel Spirits. When the door opened…nothing happened. In fact, the shoes weren't even near the doorway.

"That's odd," Ranma said. "They're usually around the house this time."

Jaden then noticed the note. "Maybe this will explain everything?"

Ranma read the note, and took a sigh of relief. "They're all out. Akane's at a friend's place, Nabs is conning someone, Kasumi's at the store, and Pops and Mr. Tendo are out drinking."

"And with what you told us, this moment doesn't last long."

"Yup. Now, what brought you to Nerima?"

Without hesitation, Jaden had explained HIS story. Summing it all up, Ranma came to only one conclusion…

"Other than the whole world-saving thing and you being able to see spirits, your life's normal. In fact, I'm starting to wonder if your teacher's a ki-draining vampire disguised as a woman."

Jaden and Yubel snickered at that. "Believe me, had you attended and said that to his face, you would get extra homework and detention for life."

"Other than that," Yubel said, "is it okay if you teach Jaden martial arts?"

"I wouldn't know," Ranma said to the formerly crazy Duel Spirit. "I can teach him the basics of Anything Goes, but I wouldn't go any further."

Jaden shrugged at that. "I could teach you about Duel Monsters in return. Think of it as a form of Martial Arts, but I'm more of a hands-on type of guy when it comes to learning."

"All right, but I don't know if there are any card shops in Nerima. And I'll have to warn you about the impending dangers here that involve people wanting to get me in bed with them, kill me, or are just plain crazy."

With that, a friendship and pact is made…but chaos usually starts when someone opens the front door.

"Oh my," a female voice said. "I wasn't expecting a visitor."

The other woman that entered gave Ranma a weird look. "I hope this isn't someone after Akane," she said, "or else the damages will go to your debt, Saotome."

Ranma gave her a weird look. "Kasumi, Nabiki, this is Jaden Yuki," he replied. "Jaden, meet the nicest woman you'll ever meet and her younger sister, the Ice Queen."

Nabiki bristled at that comment.

"Sorry to impose on you all," Jaden said, bowing, "but I found Ranma on the outskirts of town and he agreed to take me in."

"It's no trouble at all," Kasumi said, smiling. "I'll just add one more dish to the table." The eldest Tendo sister had went to the kitchen, humming a tune.

Nabiki just gave Jaden a bit of a stare. "Are you sure it's the true story?"

Jaden gave her a bit of a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"Any guy who comes here either has to make Ranma fight to the death over a fiancée his father gave him to or to kidnap Akane."

Jaden gave her a small glare. "I only met him today," he said. "I didn't know anything about his father until he and I had a discussion about it on the way here."

The "Ice Queen" was surprised. A stranger was in her house defending Ranma. No one had done so during his two-year stay…not even Akane. However, she had to keep her appearance up.

"We can't be too careful, Yuki. For all we know, you may know someone who did."

"I'll deal with it when the time comes. But for now, get off my case or else…"

"Or else what?"

Jaden couldn't find a response, but he did notice something. _Huh…Ranma never mentioned that factor._ "Or else I'll have to duel you."

Ranma was surprised. "You can't exactly fight Nabiki, Jaden," he said. "Neither she, nor you have the ability to..."

"I know what he's talking about, Saotome," Nabiki said. "How did you find out?"

"A lot of people keep their decks on the side of their hips," Jaden replied, motioning to his own. "The backpack carries my Duel Disk and spare cards. And I just noticed the dust on your clothes, signifying that you had recently won a street duel."

"Another reason why they call me the Ice Queen, Yuki. You want to settle this now or later?"

"Later. I can tell you're exhausted." With that, Jaden sat down at the table full of food.

Thirty minutes later, both Tendo Sisters were surprised at the now-competing guests. Had eating culinary delights become martial arts, Jaden and Ranma would both be in the top-two for speed, but bottom category for amounts.

"That was GREAT!" he yelled. "My compliments to the chef are in order."

"Thank you," Kasumi said, snapping out of her stupor.

Ranma then asked the question that was on his mind: "I just realized something. Where is he going to stay?"

"That depends," Nabiki said. "You and Genma already HAVE the guest room."

"I'm fine with just the couch, if anything," Jaden said.

"Nonsense, Jaden," Kasumi said. "I'm pretty sure you would enjoy sleeping in…"

"I also snore like you wouldn't believe. Trust me on this one."

"There's also the fact that there's…education involved."

Without missing a beat, Jaden had taken out a card and gave it to Nabiki.

"Strongest Duelist, Lowest Grades," Nabiki read. "Jaden Yuki, graduate of Duel Academy, 2008." She then realized something. "Now I recognize the uniform. But with the Grades and Duel record, you should be in Ra Yellow."

"I liked the view of the ocean in my old dormitory. Besides, I'm not exactly a guy who would abandon his friends unless I had to leave them to save them."

"But the grades are important, so I'm loading up Duel Academy records to transfer you to Furinkan High."

Jaden then snorted, making Nabiki notice.

"And you find this funny, why?"

"Sorry, it's just that I heard something impossible come out of your mouth." Smirking, Jaden gave the confused Tendo a reply she wasn't expecting. "Duel Academy's records happen to be tighter than Kaibacorp's own security to the point that makes Area 51 accessible to tourists. Besides, how are you going to hack into a database that's in the Pacific and on an island that's impossible to locate except for those who know the way?"

"Find those who do and use those records to transfer you to the schools."

"Good luck, then. I won't stop you, but I warned you." With no other retort, Nabiki had left the room, fuming.

_Who does that guy think he is?_ Nabiki thought. _Strongest Duelist in Slifer Red? That's basically impossible! I guess it's time to actually accept his challenge and see that the Ice Queen is not one to be toyed with._

"You do realize that she's going to find your profile and use it against you, right?" Ranma asked the young Slifer.

"So what?" Jaden asked him. "She has to realize that there are people she can't bend no matter HOW hard their wind blows. Besides, I want to see how she duels, what cards she uses, and her strategies in trying to defeat me."

And for once, Ranma could see the reasoning in the newcomer's words. _He was trying to psyche her out,_ he thought. _Looks like Nabs may have met her match._ "Be careful, though. Nerima's full of nut-jobs, and if you're in my class, watch out for the Chi-Draining Vampire, Hanako."

"I'll keep that in mind. Now is there someplace private we need to talk in?"

"Follow me."

----

Nabiki was pissed. Scratch that, she was livid. Why? Because other than the fact that she was surprised at the newcomer's reaction, she couldn't get into his file other than the age and date of birth.

_Classified? Nothing is classified from me! Looks like I'll have to play hardball with you, Jaden Yuki._ She then got out a phone and called the number to one of her contacts. "It's me. I want you and everyone to find out what you can about Jaden Yuki."

On the roof, Ranma and Jaden were admiring the view.

"If I could," Jaden said, "I'd probably use this as a place to stay in."

"If it wasn't for my curse," Ranma said, "I would. Now, what's this about Duel Monsters?"

"Well, it's basically a game that was based off of one played in Ancient Egypt by powerful Pharaohs around 5000 years ago, but apparently they had to be sealed in order to keep the world safe. Other than that, the Elemental Heroes and Yubel happen to be a few of the monsters that are out there."

"Sounds too easy," Ranma said. "You summon a monster to do your dirty work for you."

"Well, it isn't. Other than the life-point system we have, they actually dueled with their LIVES at stake back then, so no one would be able to summon their most powerful creature because they were dying."

Ranma took note of THAT. "Sounds like the fight I had between myself and Saffron, the Phoenix Tribe leader."

"For some odd reason, if he were a duelist, Sacred Phoenix of Nephestus would be his strongest card. Other than Winged Beast, Fiend, and Warrior, there are many types of class a Monster has and some can be classified as another one. Spellcasters and Dragons happen to be popular because of who wields them, which happen to be the best duelists in the world, but I think a deck is only great if it's personalized in your style, like my Elemental Heroes, Yubel, the Neo Spacians, and Winged Kuriboh, which is a Fairy monster and my partner."

"Anything else I should know about?" Ranma asked him.

"Yeah. There are also Spell and Trap cards, which are important to build your deck. Traps may seem underhanded, but they're needed to gain the upper hand on the opponent. As for Spell Cards, they're basically needed in order to activate certain types of Monsters and Traps. For example, you'll need a Spell Card known as Polymerization in order to bring two monsters together to make a Fusion Monster. Otherwise, it has to be close to Polymerization, and I think it'll be the first thing that she'll find out."

"Can any of them fight?"

Jaden shrugged. "Only Joey Wheeler, and he's more of a street fighter that can go hand-in-hand with a few thugs that would harm anyone he cares about."

Ranma sighed. "It will only take something crazy like a Martial Arts that incorporates it to make me get involved, but it wouldn't hurt to prepare for that moment. That's the first thing you need to know about Anything Goes: It will incorporate anything and everything you're challenged to into a Martial Art. In fact, that's what gave me most of these rivals in the first place."

"Then I'll have to work hard in body, mind, and soul. In the meantime, where's the nearest card shop?"

"Somewhere near the Market. Why?"

Jaden smirked. "You and I are going deck-hunting as soon as we get up."

With THIS in the household, it won't be long, considering that Genma, Mr. Tendo, and Akane had arrived during the night.

Tomorrow's going to be a bit of a surprise for them…

To be continued…


	2. Curing the NekoKen

The Horse and the King

Chapter 2: Welcome to Furinkan High. Don't Leave Your Sanity At The Door!

----

The usual morning in Nerima consisted of Ranma being thrown into the Koi Pond by his father, them sparring, and Genma himself getting thrown into the pond.

All three happened with the inclusion of a scream of bloody murder courtesy of Akane.

No, Yubel didn't kill her. She just saw Jaden sleeping on the couch, and her instincts drove her to the mallet because she thought it would get rid of him due to her brain thinking "boy equals pervert, boy sitting on couch equals rape attempt, boy plus mallet equals one less boy."

However, Jaden woke up at the sound of the scream (and he slept through the fight…) and dodged out of the way. The couch wasn't exactly lucky.

Panda, meet broken couch.

"What is your problem?" Jaden yelled. "You could have killed me!"

"Who let you in?" Akane yelled. "And why were you sleeping on the couch! You couldn't wait until tomorrow?!?"

"He's a guest, Akane," Nabiki said. "As it turns out, he got lost and is staying with us for the time being. By the way, Yuki, you're going to be joining us at Furinkan High this morning, and the broken couch is added to YOUR debt."

Both of them were surprised.

"I'm not the one who broke the couch!" Jaden yelled.

"How could you let this happen?!?" Akane asked her.

"Because you were too tired to answer." She flat-out ignored Jaden's outburst. "And Yuki, I had managed to find a way to apply you to Furinkan thanks to one of your old teachers. I think his name was…Crowler?"

Jaden growled. "Fine then. I'll just grab something on the way there." With that, he stormed out the door, joining up with a now-male Ranma. "The curse?"

"Yup," Ranma said. "And according to the Vice-Principal, you're in the same class as I am."

"Why not the Principal?"

Before Ranma could answer, they had already made it and their conversation had ended because of an interloper.

"Halt, Foul Sorcerer!" their interloper yelled. "Because of your hold of the fierce Akane and the Pigtailed Goddess, I, Tatewaki Kuno the Blue Thunder will defeat you and your Evil Summoner to prevent any casualties." A clash of thunder was heard in the background.

"Do you have to drag him into this?" Ranma yelled. "He hasn't even been here for 24 hours, at least!"

Kuno neither had the patience nor the rationality to listen to that, so his butt was beaten very easily.

"How could he have known about me?" Jaden yelled.

"Nabiki," Ranma replied. "And believe me, in his little world, he thinks I recruited you to summon tentacle monsters to rape my female form and Akane."

"Why hasn't anyone called the mental ward?"

"Because he's the Principal's grandson, and insanity happens to be part of the Kuno Family Curse."

They made it into the classroom without any difficulty. Although Jaden knew that none of his tricks would work against Hinako, he saw first-hand what she could do by using Akane as a test subject.

_If Crowler knew that, I'd probably be dead by now._

Lunch, however, was chaos. He had met Ukyo and Shampoo, and Ranma had forgotten his lunch, so Akane was added to the mix.

Once again, a mallet was involved, and added to it was the fact that Akane had actually cooked it, so it was basically something that was new to him.

_I don't think even Joey Wheeler HIMSELF would eat this._ Truth be told, Jaden was right for two reasons: It looked more like something cooked in a nuclear reactor, and it had the tendency to come to life on separate occasions.

Lucky for Jaden, the latter never happened.

On the way to the Card Shop was hell, because he had seen what some of Ranma's most cut-throat rivals could do.

_That's the guy who brought me here in the first place! Why the hell is he trying to kill Ranma, though?_

However, he noticed that one of the rivals happened to have mistaken him for Ranma, and it was the one with more weapons than the other guy did.

"Are you blind or something?" Jaden asked him. He then noticed the glasses. "Oh, right. Ranma warned me about this."

Things got worse when both the Fiancee Brigade and the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew got involved. Avoiding strikes from the blind-as-hell man, he had reached for his deck and got out a card, putting his energy into it.

A lot of people were either intrigued, scared, or amazed at the sight of it, but only one reaction could change everyone else's.

"I KNEW the Sorcerer had a Cultist on his side!"

OTHER than Kuno's.

"CAAAAAAAAAAT!"

Yeah. THAT one.

In the mess, Jaden had accidentally summoned Neo Spacian Black Panther.

"What's going on?" the Monster asked him. "Where exactly are we?"

"It's a long story, Black Panther," Jaden said, "but I think I got something OTHER than a way to solve this problem."

However, things went from bad…to worse.

"Meow," Ranma said.

"Ah crap," Jaden said, groaning. "Black Panther, you might want to get them out of here."

"Why?" the Panther asked him.

Before Jaden could explain, Ranma had LUNGED at his opponents like a tiger would his enemies. He had heard about the Neko-Ken from Ranma, but he didn't exactly picture it to be destructive to anyone who crosses his path.

Black Panther wasn't too happy about it, either. "Who was the idiot that actually did that to him!?!"

"Genma Saotome," Jaden said, solemnly. "His own father. And you know about the Neko-Ken?"

"Know it? All cats LOATHE the reputation it has, and it looks like there's no way to get him out of the broken version of it!"

"Well, find a way to snap him out of it, or else we'll all be blood on the concrete!"

"I can't. Not in this form. I'll have to do a possession in order to get him out of there."

Ranma had gone berserk because of Black Panther's appearance, so after the obstacles fled, he began to sniff out the Panther…and fall unconscious, much to Jaden's shock.

"Uh," Jaden said, "I thought he was going to turn you into a ghost."

Black Panther blinked at that. "Same here."

"Of all my years of living," an old woman said, "I have never seen Son-In-Law faint while in his Cat-like state." Both of them turned around to see an old woman walk towards them.

"Who's the old lady?" Black Panther said. The response to that was the blunt end of her staff to the head.

"Respect your elders, furball," she said. "I believe Son-In-Law mentioned me?"

Jaden sighed. "In his defense, he's older than even this Saffron guy, Cologne. Now, what the hell happened? And don't tell me that Shampoo was his husband by right, because I've heard it from Mousse while trying to dodge his strikes."

"I figured as much. Now, bring Son-In-Law with me. We have much to discuss, Supreme King."

Both Jaden and Black Panther were surprised by that. How was it that she knows about his past life? That was over thousands of years ago, and Cologne was only, what, 300 Years?

Hoisting Ranma over his shoulders, Jaden grunted. "I suggest you get back to the deck, BP," he said. "I'm going through weight training."

Black Panther nodded, noticing that his stay is no longer needed.

----

In the Neko-Hanten, Cologne had closed it down for the rest of the day. Bringing Ranma to the room with the spices and Amazonian Artifacts, Jaden sat him down on the cushion.

"I'm assuming you have questions?" the old woman asked him.

Jaden nodded. "First off," he said, "how is it that you know my identity?"

"Under your past life's rule," Cologne said, "the first Amazonian Matriarch had founded the tribe, making us both wise and strong. Had you not come to Nerima, I wouldn't have considered finding you as easy as it was. You have a similar aura to Son-In-Law's, only darker."

_Tania and Bastion_, Jaden thought. "That explains why you knew about my other self. Other than that, I thought if the Amazon WON the fight, they get to marry the man they were up against."

"That was before our tribe was in a decline. Now, I brought you here because your appearance is making the Chaos Aura from Son-In-Law stagnate. Apparently, when Mousse was attacking you, your Duel Energy and Ranma's Confidence KI had collided, making you two bonded through spirit."

Jaden then took a look at Ranma. "Yeah, we're bonded all right, but I think I broke it when I unintentionally summoned one of my other Duel Spirits to this world. I was actually trying to get my Draining Shield out."

"Don't be." The former Slifer looked at the ancient mummy in confusion. "It was BECAUSE of your Black Panther that made him aware that not all cats were treacherous. Besides, I think he'll need your help…as well as another's to complete the extraction process."

Remembering the fight, he knew that if Ranma hadn't fainted after sniffing out Black Panther, he would've been torn to shreds…wait. "You're telling me that a Duel Spirit that's in the form of a cat was taking over his body?!?" Cologne nodded. "And it was during the Neko-Ken training session?" Cologne nodded, again. "That's a bit too much to take in, Elder. Then again, it would explain why he fainted after looking at the guy."

"There are a lot of things you don't know about Ranma, King. You've only seen the surface of what he can do, and adding your powers into the mix had boosted his spirit awareness as well as your own. However, it's time I dropped the façade of Shampoo dragging him back to the village and actually helped him."

With that, she had brought out an ankh that Jaden instantly recognized.

"Isn't that the Millennium Key?"

"Just a simple knock-off, really. However, it's suited to those of Amazonian KI than those of Egyptian Origin. However, I won't be the one to help him. That doesn't say I can do my part."

"Okay, but façade?"

"This whole thing started because of his father. With your help, Ranma will be the one to end the chaos dragging everyone else here with you."

Jaden nodded, and took the replica, placing it on Ranma's head…and a surge of power had made him faint.

_Good luck, King_.

----

Looking through the dank sewer of what was Ranma's mind, Jaden was quite surprised.

_This place reminds me of Naruto,_ he thought.

A white light, however, was seen in front of him, forming into Jaden's long-time partner, Winged Kuriboh.

"I didn't expect you to appear here, buddy," he said. Winged Kuriboh just squeaked in appreciation. "Well, I need a light to guide me through this tunnel. I'll explain what happened on the way, okay?" Winged Kuriboh nodded. "Thanks, buddy."

With that, he had seen the doors that were labeled "Keep Out" that held some of his…darker secrets. Now, Jaden wasn't THAT stupid, but he DID notice one that said "Do Not Enter Under Penalty Of Trauma" that was broken.

"You think you can follow the trail?" Winged Kuriboh did so, and Jaden ran over to it. What they saw was NOT on their list of usual antagonists, but something that made Jaden craving panda steaks even more than Fried Shrimp.

It was Ranma being attacked by a thousand starved cats while being tied to fish products from top to bottom.

"That's right, my pets," a mysterious figure said. "Antagonize him even further. We'll make sure he snaps when the time is right."

_What kind of Duel Monster is that?_ Jaden thought. _The thing's more sadistic than Yubel on PMS, no offense._

"Who are you?" a female asked him, getting Jaden's attention. "Are you here to help him?" As it turns out, there was a red-haired catgirl that was a mix of both Ranma's cursed form and a certain character from Outlaw Star.

"By any chance are you Ranko?" Jaden asked her.

She looked at him with pleading eyes. "More than that. I happen to be his Duel Spirit, but I couldn't come out of hiding because it would drive Ranma crazy."

"I'll try my best to help him out," Jaden said. "But I need the name of your Card Form."

"It's Chaotic Catgirl, and I used to be his companion until the fat bastard had put him in the pit AND kicked him in the Springs."

_If Genma was one of Nightshroud's agents, he would do his work perfectly. But I'll deal with him later. Right now, Ranma needs help._ "I'll take care of the being that's causing them to attack. Right now, you just explained why Ranma acted feral and why you backed down from Black Panther. You couldn't hurt an allied Duel Monster." He then turned to Winged Kuriboh and said, "Make sure she remains unseen, pal." Kuriboh nodded, and Jaden had hid in the darkness.

"This is getting boring," the cat-like being said. "Oh well. I'll have to wait until someone throws a cat in this kid's way."

"There won't be a next time!" Jaden yelled, surprising the being. It then turned around to see Jaden standing there.

"Who the HELL are you?"

"The Landlord and I'm kicking you and your illusions out! Starting with the cats attacking my friend!"

With that, a roar was heard, surprising the cats, and making them disappear. Black Panther had reappeared.

"YOU!" the being yelled.

"You have much to learn, Illusion Panthress," Black Panther said. "Especially since you picked the wrong boy to possess!"

"He had interrupted my eternal rest with his cries for help! I had to do something!"

Jaden shook his head. "It's not Ranma at fault, Illusion Panthress. It's his FATHER that he cried for that did this to him. Instead, you should have helped him with the fear along with Ranko. If you can't see to that, then not only would me and Black Panther would strike you down, but every monster in my deck!"

"And it was pure chance that Genma found the grave in the first place," a mythical voice said. Appearing beside Black Panther was what looked like Guyver, and Illusion Panthress was shocked at his appearance.

"Neos-sama…"

"That brings up the question," Jaden said. "I know that you knew Black Panther, but how do you know Neos? Are you some kind of Neo Spacian?"

"It was through Neos that I met Master Shade," Illusion Panthress said. "He taught me everything I knew, but I wasn't considered a Neo Spacian like he was. And I'm surprised a young man like you would actually obtain him."

"It's a long and complicated story," Jaden said. "But I came here to make sure that order would be brought into the chaos of this place, and I didn't even know it until I met the Amazoness Matriarch, as you all would put it as."

"Yes," Neos said. "Cologne could sense the bond between you two, and I'm sure it had to do with your past life."

Ranma within the mind, however, had noticed that the scratches had ceased. "They stopped?" he asked himself. "And who…Jaden? What are you doing in my mind?"

"Blame Cologne," Jaden said. "Apparently, she had been waiting for me to help you out, and I'm sure the woman who's been sending those cats after you has something to say."

Illusion Panthress was irked at Jaden's tone of voice, but she complied. "Ranma, I…should have thought this through when you were first in the pit. I know sorry won't cut it, but it was my first instinct to actually possess you, but right now, I promise I won't try to do that again…to you, at least."

Ranma was surprised. "You were that rock I hit when I was running from the cats?" He then blinked. "And why wasn't I stuttering?"

"You're cured, Ranma," Chaotic Catgirl Ranko said, appearing from the wall. "Well, of your fear of cats. The Curse, however, pushed me further away because of the abuse you were taking from your so-called friends and your sad excuse for a father."

"Ranko…" Ranma said. He then got up and managed to touch her…once more. "I'm sorry, but Genma wouldn't allow it. That, and he tried to get me to stop interacting with you through the intensive training he gave me, but the Neko-Ken was the one that broke our bond."

"Can you forgive me?" Illusion Panthress asked Ranma. "I'll make sure that your father sees hell for this."

"Don't, Mirage," Black Panther said. "You do that, then you're at Genma-teme's level."

Ranma then smirked. "But I do forgive you," he replied. "However, I think we need to speak to the Old Ghoul about this. If anything, I'd like to thank her and Jaden for helping THAT problem, but why did she help you out?"

Jaden sighed. "The Kisses were a farce, Ranma. She did it because she sensed both Duel Spirits within you and wanted to help, but she was waiting for me to appear in order for it to work. Oh, and the big guy that looks like Guyver happens to be my own creation, Elemental Hero Neos while the little guy Ranko's petting is my other partner, Winged Kuriboh."

"Nice to meet you, Ranma Saotome," Neos said. Winged Kuriboh just flew around him in a friendly way.

"Not to be rude," Ranma said, "but the original Kuriboh isn't a bit of a…"

"Well, the original one was a Fiend-type monster that when discarded from the hand, keeps your Life Points safe. My little buddy here, however, when destroyed on the field, saves my life points from decreasing." He then realized something. "Do you have any idea how to get out?"

"Just click your heels three times and go, 'There's no place like home,'" Illusion Panthress said. Everyone stared at her in a weird way. "Okay, for the King, you have to concentrate on the Millennium Key knock-off while Ranma just goes into the light."

With that, both of them disappeared…

----

…and woke up in the Nekohanten's Amazonian Artifact room.

"How do you feel, Ranma?" Cologne asked him.

"Confused," Ranma said, "yet felt a burden lift off my chest. But answer me this: Why Jaden?"

"Had the Pharaoh still be around, I would've asked HIM for help, but I had to do with the Supreme King. Besides, I had to return a favor for an old friend of the Amazon Founder."

"Who, in turn, married an old friend of mine," Jaden said, "and it was through the opposite form of the Kiss of Marriage that was branded before a decline."

"Talk about coincidence," Ranma said. "Still, I may have gained powerful allies."

"That reminds me, Son-In-Law, or Ranma now that you know," Cologne said. "Those two that you befriended happen to be two of the Monster Spirits that the Amazons and Egyptians hold in high regard. However, they chose you to be their vassal because of the mix of Duel Energy and KI."

"Huh?"

"She means had I been training in Martial Arts, I'd be as strong as you are," Jaden said. "However, there's still the matter of Genma." His eyes turned bio-chromatic at the mention of the panda-baka. "Had my empire still have been around, he would be tortured for a month, branded publicly with the Mark of Shame, and hung in a crucifix with his legs broken."

Cologne had frowned at that. "It will have to wait, King. Right now, you must train Ranma in the art of the Shadow Game, as he is the reincarnation of the General that used Beasts, Warriors, and the hybrid of the two. And Ranma, you might want to look in your hands for the new of your new friends."

Ranma took a look at the cards in his hand to see both Ranko and Mirage in card form.

----

OC Card Data:

Chaotic Catgirl

Attribute: Light.

Level: 4.

Type: Beast-Warrior/Effect.

Effect: When this card is sent to the Graveyard, your opponent loses life points similar to the number of ATK points it currently has. When this card is targeted by a Spell or Trap card that removes it from play, it is sent back to the Deck.

Atk: 1200.

Def: 1500.

Illusion Panthress

Attribute: Dark.

Level: 6.

Type: Beast/Effect.

Effect: During the number of turns this card is in play, bring in one "Rabid Cat Token" (Level: 2. Atk: 500. Def: 500.) on the field. The tokens cannot be tributed until after the turn they're summoned. When this monster is destroyed, the Rabid Cat Tokens directly attack the opponent until becoming destroyed. This card gains 500 Atk points for every "Panther Warrior," "Neo Spacian Black Panther," and "Elemental Hero Shade Neos" on the field.

Atk: 2400.

Def: 2200.

----

Jaden smiled. _Looks like his friendship with cats have merged into something else,_ he thought. His face turned serious for a minute, though. _Although why would Genma try to pull this stunt when it almost got him killed…unless…_ "How did Genma react when he saw Yubel?"

Ranma remembered what happened that morning. "He looked pissed beyond all comprehension," he said, "but his only response was his usual Weak and Girly Son cry. However, he knew something right then and there…" He then realized something. "That explains why he and Soun joined in on the fight! He could see them, too!"

"This is most distressing," Cologne said. "I imagined Genma was a fool, but with this in mind, it seems he was trying to separate you from your past life."

Jaden had growled. "Then I think it's time to show him why he shouldn't mess with destiny," he said, eyes flaring with anger. "Ranma, pack your things. We're heading to Domino City!"

However, Ranma shook his head. "We need to contact my Mother," he said. "However, I don't know her phone number, but I DO know she lives on the outskirts of the Juuban District."

Jaden looked at him in complete confusion. "You mean the place where all those Youma attacks are?" he asked him.

"In order to make an omelet, you have to break a few eggs. Whatever Youma could come our way can be taken care of with my fists and your partners."

Jaden nodded, then turned to Cologne. "Thank you for your help, Matriarch," he said.

Ranma then bowed. "Nice knowing you, Old Ghoul," he said. "And try to break the news to Shampoo and Mousse."

Cologne smiled. "It was nice teaching you, Ranma," she replied. "And good luck to the both of you on your quest."

As the both of them left, the Elder turned around and smiled. "You were right, Founder," she replied. "Patience WAS a virtue."

"What can I tell you, Cologne," the figure said. "Jaden's the duelist that can create miracles, so some of us hold him in high regard. I would wonder how you would break the news to your grandniece."

"Well, I plan on telling Mousse first, then let Shampoo know. In the meantime, make yourself comfortable, Tania."

To be continued…

----

(A/n: How's THAT for a plot twist? Lame, I know, but it will get better on their way to the Juuban district. I can tell you this: Ranma WILL get a Panther Warrior, but he WON'T get Elemental Heroes. Here are the deck plans I have right now:

Jaden: Nature Neos Deck (a mix between Jaden's anime and manga deck, with Elemental Heroes, Evil Heroes, Neo Spacians, Yubel, and Winged Kuriboh);

Ranma: Nature's Armada Deck (consisting of Beasts, Beast-Warriors, Warriors, and Winged Beasts, which includes the Sacred Phoenix);

Nabiki: Greedy Ice Deck (consisting of Ice monsters, Fiends, and Ritual Monster known as Shiva);

Cologne: Amazoness Deck (a copy of Tania's deck); and

Genma: Dragon Deck (from stolen cards which includes the Five-Headed Dragon).

I'm not sure if I can put Sailor Moon into the crossover thing, but my hesitation turns into an egar grin sometimes. However, there won't be any parings in this story that involve Ranma (and I was a Ranma/Setsuna fan as well), but there will be a connection between Beryl and Yubel, and only Usagi and Setsuna can remember what happened that let Queen Serenity send the souls of the Senshi through time.

Until then, expect a confrontation or two that doesn't involve dueling and more like Uranus's itchy trigger finger.)


	3. Youma and Duel Spirit Hybrid?

The Horse and the King

Chapter 3: The Exodus from Nerima! The Sins of Beryl Outweighing the Supreme King!

----

When Ranma dealt with a ton of crap in Nerima, it was harder to get out. However, with Nabiki and Kasumi covering for them (and Nabiki did it WITHOUT blackmailing either of them), they were undetected.

Unfortunately, neither of them knew where to go, and Ranma had only gotten there through aireal view. Not exactly good for walking on the ground.

"I thought you said you knew where Juuban was," Jaden said.

"I do," Ranma replied. "It's just a little fuzzy because of the fact that I never got there on foot."

Jaden growled. "If we ever see her again…"

"Don't. We're here."

Ranma may have seen it over the horizon once in a while, but he knew it was Juuban.

"Great. Now, where's your Mom living at?"

"I haven't the faintest clue."

The former Supreme King face-faulted. "Well, it's not like we can ask for directions…" he then realized something.

Ranma noticed that look. "Oh no. You're not using my curse to ask for directions."

"I was going to suggest summoning Ranko onto the field, but that would work as well."

Ranma sighed. "You meant the Duel Monster? Great. By the way, I'm thinking we can get lost for a while. You want to find the nearest Card Store?"

Instead of a reply, they felt a coming darkness.

"What the heck is that?" Ranma asked.

"Jaden," Yubel said, "do you sense it?"

To the surprise of both of them, Yubel came out of the deck.

"Yeah," he replied. "Why does that Dark Energy seem familiar?"

"Does it have anything to do with our past lives?" Ranma asked him.

"If Yubel can sense it and it feels familiar, then yes."

Yubel frowned. "That would be my twisted sister, Beryl. Apparently, she had once inhabited this place, or something close to it, and I know they'll go after me next."

"Who's they?" Jaden asked her.

Before the transformed best friend could reply, something evil had appeared behind them.

"What the hell is that?" Ranma asked Jaden.

Yubel was frightened, believe it or not. "One of Beryl's soldiers, the Youma. Apparently, they sensed I was in the area."

"Can't you control them?" Jaden asked her.

That question was answered when it attacked the both of them.

"They branded us as traitors, apparently."

The Youma snarled at them. "You have the nerve to show your face in Beryl's land?" it asked Yubel. "I, Xenopath, will destroy you, your king, and anyone else that stands in my way, and take your negative energy to restore Beryl to her old glory!"

Ranma then got into a fighting stance while Jaden got his Duel Disk out. However, before they could battle the Alien knock-off…

"Hold it!" a woman yelled. To the fear of the Youma and the surprise of Yubel, Jaden, and Ranma, they turned to see five girls wearing something close to a schoolgirl uniform distracting them.

"Taking the energy of innocents is an offense that we cannot tolerate," the woman with the unique hairdo said. "I, Sailor Moon…"

"Sailor Mercury…" the blue-haired woman said.

"Sailor Venus…" the other blond-haired woman said.

"Sailor Mars…" the raven-haired woman said.

"And Sailor Jupiter…" the brunette said.

"…will punish you!" all of them yelled.

The Youma smirked. "What a surprise. We've got three traitors AND the Sailor brats in the same place!"

"Wait a minute," Sailor Moon said. "What do you mean by traitors?"

"And why the heck are you speaking like Venom?" Jaden asked it.

Ranma then noticed something. "You guys might want to look at this," he said.

Sure enough, the reason why it said 'we' was not because of the Venom complex, but of something MUCH worse…

…it had spurt eggs from the chest in a fashion similar to Alien.

"Talk about a twisted version of Insect Queen," Jaden said. He then realized something was off when he activated his eyes.

Mercury came to the same conclusion. "Everyone, it appears to be a Youma based off of an already-existing monster!"

"You mean a Duel Spirit," Jaden said. "Apparently, whoever this Beryl woman is has been using a back-up plan that involves turning Duel Spirits into twisted versions of their old selves."

"How do you know that?" Jupiter asked him.

Sailor Moon then recognized the biochromatic eyes. "Judai…" she said. In a reckless movement, she went alongside Jaden, much to their surprise. "You think you can help us out, civilian?"

Jaden smirked. "You're going to have to get rid of the eggs before it eats them," he said. "It will then attack us if it does."

----

OC Card Data:

Xenomorph Queen

Attribute: Dark.

Level: 7.

Type: Insect/Effect.

Effect: This card cannot attack unless you sacrifice a monster. At the end of each turn, a "Xenomorph Egg Token" (Type: Insect. Level: 1. Atk: 0. Def: 0.) appears on the field. This monster's ATK points are increased for every "Insect" monster on the field, including itself.

Atk: 2200.

Def: 2400.

(A/n: Dark Insect Queen seems redundant, doesn't it?)

----

Elsewhere, where time has no meaning, Sailor Pluto had been watching the events unfold through the time gates.

_Beryl had a back-up plan?_ She thought. _Looks like we're dealing with an old enemy here…_ She then noticed Jaden, Sailor Moon, and Ranma fighting the thing. _Is that Judai? And Ranma?_ She then checked if their appearance affected something in the time line and compared it to the one if they DIDN'T show up to combat the threat.

Needless to say, in the one where the two newcomers did, Crystal Tokyo existed, but what it was, her future self didn't tell her. _I hate myself sometimes._ What shocked her is if they didn't, the whole place would go to Hell. She then noticed something that the "none" time line didn't have with the "Judai and Ranma re-incarnated time line" had, and even though it involved Duelists on Cycles, it wasn't that.

It was the fact that if they helped out, humanity would survive, the Silver Crystal would be balanced with the Shadow Charms and Millennium Items, creating Light and Darkness to balance out their own evils, and peace throughout the place.

_There's still the matter of this Nightshroud character, but it seems like he's hiding right now. Either way, we may prevent the Great Freeze. I just hope Haruka and Michiru don't jump the gun._

Back on the battlefield, the Xenomorph Queen and the three heroes with their respective titles were in a stalemate. However, Jaden came to a conclusion that would've shocked anyone who had watched them.

"I'm going to need your help, Ranma," Jaden said.

"What is it?"

"Stall for time. I've got a plan." With that said, Jaden ran towards the other four Senshi, who were dumbstruck. "Jupiter, catch!" He then threw what looked like a pistol at Sailor Jupiter. "You only need one shot to make sure it changes position."

Oddly enough, she felt like she knew what she was doing. "**SPARK BLASTER!**" she yelled. She then fired the shot at the Xenomorph Queen, which made her clutch her chest in pain.

Ranma was dumbstruck. "What just happened here?" he asked Yubel.

"I have no clue," she replied.

However, Sailor Moon knew what he was doing, even though she couldn't explain it.

He then gave Venus a boomerang and Mercury a giant blaster. "I'm going to need you both to destroy the Barrier blocking and the Eggs before they hatch into Xenomorph Tokens."

"What barrier are we talking about?" Venus asked him.

"The one that prevents both Moon and the newcomer from attacking," Mercury said. Oddly enough, the Bubble Blaster had a built-in scouter. "What would it be in Duel Monster terms?"

"The Hallowed Life Barrier," Jaden said. "I suggest Venus goes first."

Venus nodded. "**VENUS HEART BOOMERANG!**" she yelled. As it turns out, it HAD broken the barrier for Mercury to use her Blaster.

"**MERCURY BUBBLE BLASTER!**" she yelled, firing at the eggs. However, she couldn't prevent it from eating ONE egg.

"**DEADLY ACID!**" the dark Insect Queen yelled, firing at Mercury. Luckily only the Blaster was destroyed. "What the hell?"

Jaden smirked. "Lucky for us, when Mercury was in the vicinity, Bubble Blaster took the hit for her."

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING!?!" Mars yelled. "You could have got her killed!"

Jaden said nothing, but noticed that Ranma had taken out most of the eggs. "Hang on, guys! I play Burst Return to bring all of you out of the battlefield!"

With that, everyone had found themselves behind Jaden…and Mars?

"What the heck are you doing?" she asked him.

"You have to trust me on this," he replied. "And don't face me when you do this!"

The approaching Xenomorph Queen had decided to strike Mars…until she found a hidden energy within her system.

"**MARS BURSTING IMPACT!**" she yelled, incinerating the Alien Queen. She was surprised. "How did I do that?"

"You're up, Sailor Moon!" Jaden said. "And I'm sorry if I didn't have anything for you."

The said Senshi nodded and did her final attack. "**RAINBOW MOON HEARTACHE!**" she yelled, taking out what's left of the Xenomorph Queen…and it turned into said card, which went into Jaden's hand.

_Xenomorph Queen? I was expecting Dark Insect Queen…_

"I thank you for your assistance, kind duelist," Sailor Moon said.

"It's no problem," Jaden said. "This kind of thing happens to me all the time."

"How did you manage to survive a thing like that?" Mars asked him. "And what happened during the battle?"

Jaden thought about it…then said, "I just listened to my gut and somehow it just happened."

Ranma was astounded. "Just happened?" he asked him. "You used the ability to make your cards come to life and assisted them like you would your Elemental Heroes in a duel!" He then realized that he was in front of everyone. "Oh, uh…my name's Ranma Saotome. Sorry about this."

Before Jaden could comply, he was almost attacked by two strikes of wind and water.

"What the hell was that?" Ranma yelled.

"Uranus and Neptune, stand down!" Sailor Moon yelled. "They just helped us out!"

Both the newcomers were frightened, but for two different reasons.

_Oh man…if I see the Panda again, I am going to kick his ass._ That was coming from the walking Chaos Nexus thinking that whoever did that made a deal in his name.

_They can't be THAT upset,_ Jaden thought. _I was under Beryl's control!_ He then realized something. _How do I even REMEMBER something like that!?!_

"Sorry, Princess," Uranus said, "but those two are a threat to the Moon Kingdom."

"Nothing personal," Neptune said, "but we need to make sure that humanity stays stable."

"You sure it isn't because of my father?" Ranma asked the two women that stood there. Everyone was surprised at that comment.

"Either way," Jaden said, "whatever happened between us is in the past, and if you bring up something that I regret, I'll have to incapacitate you both, regardless of what Serenity would think!"

Before both Outers could take out their Talismans…

"Why are you attacking the men responsible for sending you all into this era?" a woman asked them.

"WHAT!?!" Uranus and Neptune yelled.

"WHAT!?!" Ranma, Jaden, and their Duel Spirits yelled.

"WHAT!?!" the Planetary Inners and Tuxedo Mask (who was hiding in a tree) yelled.

Sailor Moon smiled. "I didn't think I'd see you again, Judai. Then again, it HAS been 3000 years."

Jaden smirked. "Well, someone had to make sure that Beryl had to be stopped," he said, "but I didn't expect myself to fall into the Dark Side, either."

"Wait a minute, Pluto," Uranus said. "You mean to tell me that Judai, SUPREME King Judai of the DARK MOON EMPIRE, actually HELPED Queen Serenity send us here?!?"

"In a nutshell, yes," Pluto said. "I don't know how, but it seems that with both his and Ranma's presence in here, not only would the Great Freeze be prevented, but Crystal Tokyo can be built without any setbacks." She then realized something. "We need to get somewhere private. People are starting to ask questions."

----

In the Hikawa Shrine, they had seen them turn back into a civilian identity. However, if they squealed about it, the Monster/Youma Hybrids will put their families' lives in jeopardy.

"We seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot," Jaden said. "Again, I go by Jaden Yuki, Duel Academy Graduate and former Slifer Red, and I'm sure Pluto here has seen my achievements…"

"Again," Ranma said, "I'm Ranma Saotome. Sorry about that…and I might need a cup of hot water with a cup of cold water, because I've got one HECK of a tale to tell."

"And you'll be craving Panda Steaks every time you hear it," Jaden added. "Trust me on this one."

"Sorry about Haruka and Michiru," the green-haired senshi said. "They almost lost powerful allies. My name's Setsuna Meioh."

"You're THE Ranma Saotome?" Haruka asked him, startling Ranma.

"Haruka," Michiru said, "don't scare him."

Haruka stopped there. "Sorry. I'm a bit of a fan of yours. My name's Haruka Tenoh, by the way."

Michiru sighed. "I go by Michiru Kaioh."

"Hotaru Tomoe," the newcomer, a black-haired teen, said, sadly.

Jaden noticed her attitude. _Poor girl. She must have been beaten up recently._

"My name's Ami Mizuno," the blue-haired woman said. "I am quite curious about how you implemented those weapons and techniques into our grid."

The brunette sighed. "She's always like this when it comes to something unexplained," she said. "Anyways, my name's Makoto Kino, and Ranma…you look like my old sempai, for some odd reason."

Ranma groaned. _I don't know about those two, but I'm pretty sure Pops met HER parents…_

"You're the two men I saw in the flames," the raven-haired woman said. "The Wild Horse and the Supreme King fighting a corrupted light and winning. And I'm Rei Hino, by the way."

"By any chance are you referring to the Light of Destruction?" Jaden asked the miko.

Setsuna groaned. "You mean the Silver Crystal wannabe?" she asked him. "I can see why Beryl tricked you back then, Judai."

"Past aside," the long-haired blond said, "my name's Minako Aino. You want to go out sometime?"

"Sorry, Minako," Jaden said, "but there are two things wrong with that: One, I don't know you all that well, and two, I've already got a fiancee."

Ranma was surprised at that last part. "How did you end up in THAT situation?" he asked him.

"A tennis duelist who goes by the name of Harrington Rosewood, whose attitude matches that of Tatewaki Kuno's own, had dueled me for that right. I had won, but it wasn't until I met you that I realized what it meant."

"So he's a Kuno, then, like Mask Boy here."

The only other man in the room bristled at that comment. "At least I don't spout out poetry, if that's what you're thinking," he replied. "I go by Mamoru Chiba, but I was Prince Endymion in the Silver Millennium, and was considered a good friend of yours, Jaden."

Jaden smirked. "At least I had friends during that youth. By any chance do you remember Yubel?"

"AKA, the sister to the horny tyrant who died trying to save my butt back then? I remember her dragon form…"

"I'm not dead, Endymion!" Yubel yelled, surprising everyone. "I'm just stuck in the spirit realm and am now fused with Jaden to survive."

The pigtailed woman was the last one to go. "And I'm Usagi Tsukino, also known as Sailor Moon. And I was wondering why I remembered him. You were Endymion's best man."

Jaden was a bit confused. "I've heard of duelists having past lives in Egypt, but us in a history that wasn't recorded in books?!?"

"I don't think you're alone," Ranma said. "I've been getting these memories as well, and if I recall correctly, I'm the reason why I gave you the Moon Cats in the first place."

"Interesting," Ami said, checking out the Mercury Computer. "Even though their energies are similar to those of the Four Generals, it's purer than Beryl's."

Jaden sighed. "And we were debating on which why it was to Ranma's mother's house, too," he said. "Now we're dragged into ANOTHER battle that decides the fate of the world."

"If Beryl is as strong as Saffron…" Ranma said, muttering.

"I think you'd better explain this to us slowly," Haruka said.

Both their stories were told at that moment. They were surprised that Jaden had his own brand of Heroes that helped save the world from being taken over by a false light source and someone who existed within the darkness of others hearts, but they only had one thought when they heard the end of Ranma's story:

_GENMA MUST DIE!_

"What kind of idiot does that to his own kid?!?" Makoto yelled.

"If there's an enemy of love and justice," Minako said, "it's him!"

"Hotaru," Haruka said, "stay away from Genma Saotome."

That was a given.

"So…" Ranma said, "you're not going to call us freaks?"

"You saved countless innocents, Ranma," Usagi said. "The only thing that would piss us off is how they treat you."

"As for Jaden," Setsuna said, "his connection to the Shadow Realm is what's needed to keep the future safe."

"I could never get the concept of that," Rei said. "Shadow Realm?"

Jaden sighed. "That is a story in itself," he said. "During ancient times, powerful Pharaohs and their High Priests had played an ancient version of Duel Monsters, but a Tomb Robber named Bakura had found an evil overlord and set the Shadow Realm to destroy the world. This was before anyone knew the Silver Millennium even existed, but a powerful Pharaoh, who looked like the current King of Games, had used the Egyptian God Cards to defeat the great evil and seal the games inside the Millennium Items. Basically, the Shadow Realm is like the Negaverse, only a lot more sinister and led by a guy who 'had a face only a mother would like,' in layman's terms."

"And the Card you gained after your victory," Rei said. "What happened to it?"

"According to Yubel, it's a conformation on what the Youma can do while using Shadow Magic in the mix. However, someone had used a Trap Card with it called Hallowed Life Barrier. And the boomerang Minako used happened to have disengaged it." He then realized something. "It may seem like an inhuman experiment, but I'm actually wondering if Equip Spells can be used with you guys."

Setsuna had a bit of curiosity. "From what I've seen, it seemed beneficial for you to actually use that."

"Other than that," Mamoru said, "this meeting proves that someone…or something, is bringing Beryl back to life."

Whatever the Wild Horse and the Supreme King stepped in, they're dragged in it until they can help out.

But one problem remained…

"How do we get to Nodoka Saotome's house?" Ranma asked them.

"You mean Aunty Nodoka's?" Makoto asked him. "It's right next to my apartment complex. Why?"

Ranma frowned. "By any chance did she…"

"Nothing like that, Ranma," Setsuna said. "The Kino family happens to be family friends to your mother's clan. I'm just angered that your father stained it in his name."

"Wait, you mean Genma's not a Saotome?" This was news for him. The engagements to Akane, Ukyo, and the other fiancees he had were null and void, but he didn't want to spoil the surprise.

"I happen to be the Senshi of Time. Apparently, your father was a ronin when he married your Mother, but she went to great lengths to make sure that he didn't get her money. And Judai, or Jaden now…"

Jaden's attention, which had been wandering slightly, had responded to it. "Yeah?"

"Your friend from Duel Academy…well, she happens to be related to Ranma here."

"Which female friend are we talking about?" _She can't possibly be referring to Blair, but could it be…_

"The one in Obelisk Blue."

That threw Jaden in a loop. "Alexis and Atticus…related to Ranma?"

Ranma couldn't help but overhear, and groaned at that. "Welcome to the Engagement Parade, Jaden," he said. "Mom has a bit of a grandchildren thing, so she'd want you to get married to her."

Jaden groaned at that as well. "Now you tell me."

Things just got hectic for the former student of Duel Academy.

To be continued…

----

(A/n: At least Jaden isn't related to the Tendos…

So, yeah, both Jaden and Ranma are going to fight for the safety of others to make sure the future is safe. However, they'll have to confront Ranma's Mother and deal with the engagement between Jaden and Alexis.

Yeah, it's a JudaiAsuka/JadenAlexis fic. And knowing Ranma's experience with women, his friend will expect the worst. At least there's only one involved…

For Monsters in Ranma's deck, Gaia the Fierce Knight would be a definite because it's a knight on a horse, but I'll have to go with Swift Gaia. And he'll possibly get either Gilford the Lightning or Gilford the Legend…or both. I'm not sure if I'll give the Senshi a deck, but if Setsuna and Usagi were Duelists, they would both have something similar to Jaden's Elemental Heroes, only they'll be called Senshi Heroes, but Setsuna's would have something similar to Destiny Heroes while Usagi's would involve Nature Heroes. Wouldn't Aster be surprised?

As for Crossovers, Sailor Moon has been shown, but I'm thinking of getting the original cast (which includes the Pharaoh, Atem) in on the action. That, and imagine the look on Jaden's face when Kaibaman shows up with Seto Kaiba. He's heard of Jaden's achievements in Duel Academy and would want to test his skill himself, but would he pull out all the tricks, or would it be a repeat of his duel with Kaibaman?

How am I going to get Atem back? Well, Jaden happens to be walking hotel full of Duel Spirits, and my YuGiOh GX Movie fic had an incarnation of Atem in his deck, so…Jaden's getting Gold Pharaoh, Silver King, Bronze Rider, Millennium Knight, and Shining Heart along with Black Mage and Apprentice Mage.

As for Ranma, I'm using the plot device of his father marrying in the Saotome House (which I first read in Wedded Bliss) and abusing the name. Happosai will make an appearance and his duel spirit would be Abidos the Third, and he'll help out Ranma, but he'll possibly put the Sailor Senshi in Danger.

As for Xenomorph Queen, it's in Jaden's Deck as a trophy, and Ranma understood the importance of Spell Cards.)


	4. Return of the Pharaoh

The Horse and the King

Chapter 4: Meeting Ranma's Mother! Torture for Genma Saotome!

----

Nodoka Saotome was many things. Grandchild-crazy, a housewife, and can make threats with her family sword is just a few of the things she is. She wasn't stupid when it came to Ranma's well-being, and a knock on the door to her house would spark something that's been in her system since her husband took her son on the training trip.

She had opened the door to see Ranma with a kid his age.

"Hi, Mom," Ranma said. "Sorry about not calling in advance, but I need a place to stay for a while."

"You're welcome anytime, my son," Nodoka said. She then noticed his friend standing there. "Who's this?"

Jaden chuckled. "Name's Jaden Yuki," he said. "I'm a friend of your son's. Sorry about not telling you, but I can assure you that I'm not like his other 'friends.'"

Nodoka noticed the tone in his voice. "Well, any true friend of Ranma's is welcome in my house."

Both Jaden and Ranma had entered the house and sat on the table.

"Now, would you boys like anything to eat?"

"I don't want to impose, Mrs. Saotome," Jaden said.

"Please, call me Aunty Nodoka."

Jaden was surprised. "Aunty Nodoka, but I was hoping you could learn the truth about Ranma's training trip. However, I need to call a few friends of mine in order to tell the story."

Ranma knew who he was talking about. Nodoka was a bit surprised at that.

"You're the Jaden Yuki they talked about?" she asked him. He nodded. "Well, there's no need to call them on the phone."

"Aunty Nodoka," a female voice said, "who's visiting us?"

Nodoka saw this as an opportunity. "A friend of yours and the cousin I told you about, Alexis."

"Hey, Lexi!" Jaden yelled.

The reaction was instantaneous. Alexis had rushed down towards the table and sat next to Jaden, much to Ranma's bewilderment.

"Where have you been?" she asked him. "Do you realize that because of the engagement between us, she's been asking me if I went the next step with you?"

Jaden chuckled in a nervous reaction. "It's a long story, Alexis, but I'd like you to meet your cousin, Ranma Saotome."

"Now I'm convinced, Mom," Ranma said. "Only someone who can move that fast can be related to me."

Alexis was a bit surprised at that comment, but only because she only heard it from word of mouth. Now she got to meet her cousin for the first time in years.

"Atticus is going to be surprised," she said. "He wouldn't think that his cousin is a jock that can transform into a woman through a cold shower."

Ranma was actually quite shocked. He turned to Nodoka for an answer.

"Even the manliest of men have a feminine side," was her only reply.

"How long have you known?" Ranma asked her.

"Nabiki told me everything, son. The curse, your fiancee problems, even the Neko-Ken. However, I knew that Genma was trying to sever your link with the spirits you befriended when you were young, but I'm quite surprised that your friend managed to re-estabilsh that link."

_Well, there goes THAT problem,_ Jaden thought. "Well, it wasn't easy, but I told Illusion Panthress that her true target was Genma instead of Ranma, and a couple old friends of hers helped me out."

"What is it with you and Duel Spirits?" Alexis asked him. "I know about the Supreme King fiasco, but I didn't know you could create miracles for other people."

"I see them everywhere I go, Alexis. Heck, Ranma saw a few of my own when I explained the basis of Duel Monsters with him. However, getting a deck for him is the hard part."

"But why would Nabiki tell you this for free?" Ranma asked her.

Nodoka frowned. "Because I told her information in exchange and I back up my threats instead of sitting on the sidelines. As soon as Genma finds you, I will be divorcing him and filing for child abuse."

Jaden sighed. "Well, at least she has a heart," he said, "and we took care of the Amazon Fiancee because of my link to their tribe…or rather, Haou's link."

"Shampoo won't give up that easily," Ranma said. "If she sees me with any female, she'll go 'Obstacle is for killing.' However, Mousse would actually lie off, considering that I was never engaged to her in the first place."

"We'll deal with her when the time comes, my son. Right now, it's getting late, and I'm sure whoever you fought must have tired you out."

With that, the residents of the Saotome House had turned in for the night.

----

The next morning was a bit of a headache. Apparently, Ranma was transferred to Juuban High thanks to Setsuna and Nabiki, but he had to demonstrate the curse to the class.

As for Jaden, he managed to get a job at the Crown Arcade, which was another hideout for the Senshi. It wasn't his idea, but Atticus had got him the job because he was the manager. Quite surprising, he had visitors in the form of cats…or Moon Cats, so to speak.

"By any chance are you still upset about what happened years ago?" Jaden asked them.

"Not as much as we should," the white cat said, "but does this discussion have to be in a public area?"

"Artemis," the black one said. "Sorry about him. He's still a little surprised that you and the Chaos Nexus actually appeared."

Jaden sighed. "Well, I'd have to meet the royal advisers sooner or later. My shift's about to end in a couple minutes, anyways." He groaned. "I STILL can't find any cards that can help Ranma control his Shadow Magic, and the only place I know is Domino City."

However, someone had entered the arcade at that moment and overheard the conversation between the King and the Advisors.

"Can I help you?" Jaden asked him.

"Are you Jaden Yuki?" the man asked him.

Jaden was surprised. "Yeah…do I know you?"

The man smirked. "I believe my other half gave you the Winged Kuriboh as a parting gift. Oh, and it's nice to see that the Silver Millennium had survivors."

Jaden knew he was talking about the cats, but other half…the only person who gave him Winged Kuriboh in the first place was Yugi Moto, so how did he know?

_Didn't Winged Kuriboh send me into the past? If so, then the man who entered the arcade happens to be…_ "Pharaoh Atem?"

Sure enough, it WAS Atem, only in a modernized form of himself (in the Yami Yugi form, so to speak). Both the cats were surprised at this development.

"Nice to meet you again, Jaden," Atem said. "However, it proves the Egyptian Gods were right. The mission WASN'T over."

"How do you know about the Silver Millennium?" Luna asked him.

"We knew many things, but they filled me in on the incident with Beryl, the Supreme King, and Queen Serenity. However, I DO know someone who has a card shop in town."

Jaden nodded. "You two can come along, if you want," he said to the cats.

"Thanks for the invite," Artemis said, "but we have to decline. We've got pressing matters to go to. Luna?"

Luna nodded. "Nice meeting you two," she said. With that, both cats exited the door while Jaden and Atem went towards the Ratfink Card Shop.

"Ratfink?" Jaden asked him.

Atem sweatdropped. "It's a lot better than the original name they had," he replied. "Now, your friend happens to have a past life in your era, right?" Jaden nodded. "And his cards happen to be beasts of Nature, right?" Again, Jaden nodded. "I think I know which cards would suit him, but only because Martial Arts and Dueling happen to be part of the same caliber when it comes to energy."

Both of them entered the place to see it nearly empty.

"Welcome to Ratfink Card Shop," the man said. "How may I…Pharaoh!?!"

Jaden recognized the man. "Is that Marik?" he asked him. "The runner-up on Battle City?"

"He wasn't himself that day," Atem replied. "We'll get the reunions later. Right now, we're here because of the pre-ordered cards you ordered for Ranma Saotome."

"Right," Marik said. "And I'm assuming the man with you happens to be the Supreme King?" Atem nodded. "I've got the stuff you asked for, but I'm still surprised you're still alive. Are you sure you're not a Youma in disguise?"

"He knew about my Duel in the Past, Marik," Jaden said. "I thought it was from the Nanban Mirror, which didn't affect anything."

"The Matriarchs could replicate the Millennium Items," Atem replied, "but their magic doesn't compare to the powers of the Shadow Game. However, I think it was a bad idea to replicate the ring AFTER Bakura was sealed inside it."

Marik groaned. "Looks like the Tomb Robber's back, but it's only speculation, Pharaoh."

"Call me Atem, please."

With that, Marik gave them the cards needed, and Jaden was surprised at the cards HE got.

"Hang on," Jaden said. "I have to see if you are who you claim to be." With that, Jaden's eyes changed color…and after analyzing him, changed back. "It's the truth, alright. His aura's as gold as my own."

Marik nodded. "Good enough. Watch out for the Youma, you two."

As they left, Jaden was still a bit suspicious about him.

"I know," Atem said. "It's hard to believe, but I'm back."

"You could have shifted your Aura," Jaden said, "but I'm not exactly willing to test my theory. And the Puzzle's not called the Pendant like Titan did when he went up against me."

Atem stopped. "Someone faked a Shadow Realm game?" Jaden nodded. "By any chance did he pay for it with his life?" Jaden nodded. "Then justice has been served. By the way, why did you take the Arcade job?"

"Through a friend's brother. He happened to be one of the few students at Duel Academy that was missing in the Forbidden Blue Dorm back at Duel Academy Island."

Atem understood that part. Sometimes having family connections paid off.

Jaden then stopped. "You might want to step back, Pharaoh."

Before Atem could reply, a stomp shocked them out of their stupor.

"What was that?" Atem asked him.

"Either a Duel Monster, a Youma, or a combination of the two," Jaden said, activating his Duel Disk. "You got your Duel Disk?"

Atem nodded, taking out a golden version of the V1 Duel Disk, and activating it.

The disturbance came into view…and it resembled Serpent Night Dragon, only a LOT more sinister.

"If it isn't the Pharaoh and the Supreme King," it said. "You two will pay for what you did to Xenopath, for I, Manda, will destroy you both."

Atem growled. "I can see why you said combination," he said to Jaden. "What do you want with us, abomination?"

"Your energy and that of other Haous and those Sailor Brats. But you must die in order to take them down."

_Which means that I'll be able to see if he's telling the truth,_ Jaden thought. "You'll have to get through us first, Manda!"

----

OC Card Data:

Serpent Dragon of Corruption

Attribute: Dark.

Level: 7.

Type: Dragon.

Description: _The Serpent Night's evil twin. Unlike it's other, this dragon terrorizes the world with its evil laugh._

Atk: 2300.

Def: 1900.

----

If it wasn't for the distraction of the Pharaoh, Jaden would've been more focused. However, Atem took the first incentive.

"I summon the Dark Magician!" he yelled, taking out the monster. As it turns out, it WAS the Dark Magician Yugi had, and the Puzzle was there as plain as day. "Jaden!"

"Oh, right!" Jaden said. With his eyes activated, he had managed to get the right card out of his deck. "Let's go, Elemental Hero Neos!" With that, Neos took the playing field alongside the Dark Magician, who acknowledged his presence with a nod.

Both of them were in fighting position, but Serpent Dragon was ready. "Attack them, my minions!"

Before anyone could ask, miniaturized versions of the monster had attacked both monsters.

Jaden growled. _Neos is getting thrashed out there! And why can't I keep the nagging doubt about the Pharaoh out of my head?_ He then noticed something. _He's concerned?_

"Hang on," Atem said. "I'm bringing in backup! Let's move, Celtic Guardian!" With that, the celtic warrior went in, slashing the miniaturized snakes in two.

_Right._ "Flame Wingman!" Jaden yelled. "Get Neos out of the swarm!" The Fusion Monster came out of the card and helped Neos out. "And I equip Flame Wingman with Fusion Weapon!"

The summoned Fusion Monster had a weapon attached to its flamethrower-like appendage.

"Let's go, Flame Wingman! Attack the Serpent Dragon!"

However, Atem was shocked. "No, wait!"

Jaden noticed it, but it was too late as he felt most of his energy being sucked dry. "What just happened?"

Atem noticed something on its forehead. "It has Dragon Treasure equipped on its head," he said. "With the loss of Flame Wingman, it managed to get rid of most of your life points."

Jaden noticed it when he saw the counter go down.

"Now do you see?" Manda asked them. "It's impossible to defeat me, as I am invincible!"

"**MOUKO TAKABISHA!**" they heard. A KI blast had struck Manda in the head, making it squirm. "Sorry I'm late, Jaden."

Jaden had noticed it as well. "Ranma? How did you find us?"

Ranma smirked. "I just found ugly and you two were fighting him. Now, we'll deal with the visitor later. Right now, we have a Youma to destroy."

Jaden nodded. "Brace yourself, Ranma. He's got a ton of mini-mes that are on the prowl."

Ranma noticed it as well. "Well, no one messes with my friends," he said. "Especially someone as ugly as you!"

Manda growled. "Your devotion makes your weak, boy," he said. "What a weak and girly son I have to rely on weakling duelists that are possessed!"

Ranma recognized that voice. "Pops?!?"

Atem and Jaden were shocked. "That THING is your Father?" Atem yelled.

Through the confusion, Jaden saw the truth. "Worse," he said. "He's the one controlling it!"

Through a void of darkness, a man had appeared from the shadows. Ranma and Jaden recognized him immediately.

"Perceptive, weakling," he said. "I was able to find you because of the concentrated Shadow Magic, boy, now you're coming with me back to the Tendos so we can get you wed to Akane!"

Ranma growled. "How can I marry someone who doesn't trust me, Pops?" he yelled. "I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I'm not marrying Akane, especially since she tried to hurt the only true friend I've had through a misunderstanding!"

Genma laughed like a maniac at that. "Who do you think told her to do so?"

Jaden and Ranma were in shock.

"You knew…" Ranma said. "You tried to kill him."

"I couldn't let them possess you again, Ranma. I didn't want you to learn the truth about my side of the family, so I had Akane 'beat up the newest pervert,' so to speak. In truth, I am actually a servant of my lord, and he gave me Manda as a partner, as well as other monsters in my deck."

Jaden growled. _It's official. Genma will die._

Before either two who knew him would reply, Atem asked the question. "Why kill Jaden in order to satisfy your lord's wishes?"

"Since you're going to die, I might as well tell you…"

Ranma growled. "Don't bother. He was going to engage me to the Tendos while taking me on a training trip that involves treachery, many different fiancees, a raging fear of cats, and a curse that activates during a cold shower. Until recently, he wanted me to be the best, but now I see the truth. You wanted me to be a soldier underneath your lord, and marrying Akane Tendo was the sinker that would make my child an offering, isn't it?"

"Except for that last part, yes. I was going to use your child, not as an offering, but as a vessel for my lord."

Atem heard it, and decided to step up. "You're no father, Genma," he said. "All I see is a foundation of evil in your blood, and I won't stand for it! Famlies are meant to be cherished, not used as a scapegoat in order to gain power. All I see is a coward who wants his son to be a mindless slave."

"Blah blah blah," Genma said. "Manda, exterminate the fools."

"Yes, master," Manda said.

"Not so fast, Genma!" Jaden said. "Neos, Contact Fuse with Dark Magician!"

"Understood, Jaden," Neos said. With that, both of them had fused into a magician version of Elemental Hero Neos.

"Meet Elemental Hero Astral Mage Neos!" Jaden yelled.

----

OC Card Data:

Elemental Hero Astral Mage Neos

Element: Light.

Level: 9.

Type: Fusion/Warrior/Effect.

Required Monsters: "Elemental Hero Neos+Dark Magician or Elemental Hero Black Mage."

Effect: This monster can only be summoned by using Contact Fusion through "Elemental Hero Neos" and "Dark Magician" or "Elemental Hero Black Mage." When this card is in play, this monster is treated as both a Spellcaster and a Warrior. This monster can destroy a Continuous Spell Card or Trap if the Battle Phase is sacrificed. Unless Neos Space is in play, this monster is destroyed at the next turn.

Atk: 2900.

Def: 2300.

----

"So what?" Genma asked him. "I had already sacrificed enough monsters to make this next one come to life. Come forth, Five-Headed Elemental Dragon!"

Manda disappeared, only to appear through the Five-Headed God Dragon.

"I doubt anything you have can save you THIS time!"

"Don't think it's over before it begins, Pops!" Ranma said. "Someone else wants revenge on the incident from years ago, and you're about to meet her. Let's go, Illusion Panthress!"

"WHAT!?!" Genma freaked out at that.

Mirage glared at Genma. "So YOU'RE the man who woke me from my slumber," she said. "Well, it's about time I got out in order to bring righteous justice on your sorry ass."

"Save it for later," Ranma said. "Right now, I don't think you can handle the Five-Headed Dragon."

"He's right," Jaden said. "Astral Mage Neos is the only one who can actually damage it."

Genma was surprised not by the fact that Ranma had successfully summoned the one Monster he wanted to torment Ranma with, BUT his son wasn't afraid. "Boy, what's wrong with you? Shouldn't you be frozen up by now?"

"Not anymore, Genma," Ranma said to him. "It's about time the Law of Averages turned in our favor instead of yours, and my Duel Spirits will make sure of it!"

Atem was surprised, but regained his composure and said, "Ranma, I'll need Illusion Panthress and Astral Mage Neos."

Jaden was surprised. "Why?" Jaden asked him.

"Just trust me on this one!"

Jaden nodded. "Astral Mage Neos…"

"Illusion Panthress…" Ranma said.

"Control shift to Atem and follow his orders!"

Being an alien had its perks for Neos. Telepathy happens to be part of the powers he had, so he knew what Atem was doing.

Illusion Panthress was skeptical, but did so anyways.

"What are you going to do?" Genma asked him. "Your monsters are so weak and girly that they would pale in comparison to my dragon!"

"Obviously," Atem said, "you've never gotten the memo." He then took out a card. "I sacrifice Illusion Panthress, Celtic Guardian, and Astral Mage Neos in order to form a beast that has been awakened!"

Sure enough, the sacrifices were made, and by the time the Senshi got there, they were too late to make their move.

"The weather report never called for rain," Jupiter said.

"It's not rainclouds," Mercury said. "It's raw power. Something big is going to enter the battlefield!"

Setsuna recognized it. "It's the power of a God," she said. "Don't try to confront it or else you'll get caught in the crossfire."

"A GOD!?!" Sailor Moon yelled.

"Not just any God," Mars said. "It's one of the Egyptian Gods."

"And its target happens to be the man I told Hotaru to stay away from," Uranus said.

Back on the battlefield…

"Don't tell me it's going to rain," Ranma said, groaning.

"Those aren't for rain, Ranma," Jaden said, eyes changing color. "Those are clouds of power. Slifer the Sky Dragon's coming to the field!" Jaden then drew cards at that moment.

Ranma was confused by his antics. "What are you doing?"

Sure enough, Slifer made it to the field. With the cards Jaden drew and those in Atem's hand, its power would easily topple Genma's dragon apart.

"Weak and girly?" Atem asked him. "I don't think Slifer would appreciate whatever's coming out of your mouth." Slifer growled to confirm that.

"Your power's still weak against my God Dragon!" Genma said. In truth, he was actually freaked out.

"Guess again, tubby!" Jaden yelled. "Slifer's ATK and DEF points are up by 1000 for every card in our hands. And don't bother summoning another monster. If it's less than 2000 attack points, it will be destroyed by Slifer's Second Mouth attack."

"Slifer the Sky Dragon," Atem said, "attack Five-Headed Dragon! Thunder Strike!" With that, Slifer had aimed at the Five-Headed Dragon and was able to destroy it.

Genma had freaked. "No…it can't be. You must have cheated!"

"I don't cheat," Atem said. That's when Genma started losing it.

Instead of the man's usual face, we see a droned version of it with the symbol of the Nega-Verse mixed with the Orichalcos and the Eye. "I didn't expect you to defeat Genma's monster. Then again, the moron never had any skills to begin with."

"Nightshroud!" Jaden yelled. _I was just being sarcastic! How was I supposed to know he was like that!?!_

"Perceptive as usual, Jaden. And I told you I'd be back, but I didn't expect you to find my newest vessel."

"What did you do to my father?" Ranma asked the man behind the strings.

"Easy. He never put his end of the bargain up, so I had to get him here in order to make sure you go back to Nerima. I didn't want anyone else to get involved with…my feud with the Supreme King. Especially the Pharaoh, as well."

Atem could see parallels to Bakura with that voice. "Nightshroud, whatever you have planned won't be able to work. I will hunt you down and send you to the Shadow Realm myself."

Jaden could see why Atem was the genuine deal. "That goes double for me!"

"Same here," Ranma yelled.

"We will punish you in the name of the Moon, Nightshroud," Sailor Moon said. "For allying with the Negaverse, we will hunt you down!"

Nightshroud laughed his head off. "I'd like to see you try, Princess," he said. "I'll be sending my agents during the newest Battle City, Judai. But that's not until six months' time. Until then, start training them. You're going to need it." Nightshroud then disappeared, leaving Genma's body behind.

Ranma checked his pulse. "He's still alive, but unconscious," he said.

"Normally, I'd be upset that he's casual about it," Atem said, "but from what I've heard, he's not exactly 'dad-of-the-year' material."

"Apparently," Jaden said, "he's hired everyone from Nerima out to get us. And I completely FORGOT about Battle City 2!"

"Atem, is it?" Ranma asked the newcomer, who had nodded. "We need to talk."

----

After introductions, demonstrations, and card-giving later, Ranma had a full deck with Monsters, Spells, and Traps while Jaden was surprised at the Elemental Heroes he gained.

"Elemental Hero Shining Heart?" he asked Atem. "Dare I ask what Pegasus was thinking? Some of these monsters would make Kaiba go after me in order to get rid of them!"

"It's best left unknown," Atem said. "Besides, some of the monsters happen to be based off of my friends' own, and now the Heroes don't just involve Warriors, but Spellcasters and Dragons now."

Ranma just looked through the cards. "Some of them mix my personality and encounters. I know Panther Warrior, Gaia the Fierce Knight, Swift Gaia, Gilford the Lightning, and Gilford the Legend are actual monsters, but some of these monsters happen to be based off of people I know!"

"Other than that," Setsuna said, "with what happened out there, I'm starting to think that Beryl and Nightshroud are working together."

"And Battle City 2 is basically the heart of the problem," Jaden said. "And now I'm convinced that you're the Pharaoh, Atem. Only someone with Egyptian Origin can wield an Egyptian God Card."

Atem gave Jaden a stern look. "From what I've heard, you had no problem controlling the Winged Dragon of Ra," he replied.

"That's because I wanted to free Ra from a duelist that found a way to control it. In return, I got Skyscraper II – Hero City." He then noticed something that made him squirm. "Oh, no…no way!"

Everyone turned to look at what made the young Supreme King shudder in fear.

"What is it?" Ranma asked him.

"The Sacred Beasts? In my DECK!?! This can't be happening!"

Atem realized what was going on. "You've faced them before, haven't you?"

"Twice, and the Fusion Monster was included with it. Why?"

Atem sighed and took out a Fusion Monster that required Obelisk, Slifer, and Ra (the Monster that defeated Zorc at the end of the Pharaoh's Memories Arc), and everyone was surprised that nothing happened. No conflict, no clash, nothing.

"Apparently, they and the Egyptian Gods are in a truce," Atem said. "One that would last for eternity, it seems."

"That can't be possible," Rei said, checking the cards out. "Those cards are pure Darkness."

"Only when used in the wrong way," Yubel said. "Both Kagemaru and Marcel didn't know the true power of these things, but I have a feeling that Jaden will."

Jaden sighed. _Out of the frying pan and into the fire, I suppose,_ he thought. _Still, I have a feeling the Sacred Beasts are here for revenge…but why?_

Atem had similar thoughts running through his head. _If anyone looks at it differently, Jaden and I would be considered relatives in a twisted way through time. Still, the Egyptian Gods and the Sacred Beasts are two sides of the same coin. I'm guessing even THEY want something…but does it involve Nightshroud?_

"That reminds me," Jaden said, "Atem, what was the name of that place we went to?"

"Ishtar Ratfink Card Shop," Atem said, "but it's a recently opened place. I'm thinking we need to visit my Grandfather's shop as well as Duke's in order to get supplies."

"One problem," Ranma said. "Some of us don't have any money."

As if on cue, Alexis and Atticus had entered with boxes of cards, much to everyone's surprise.

"Nice to see you again, Jaden," Atticus said.

Everyone was surprised. "How did you manage to get those boxes up here?" Usagi asked them.

Alexis sighed. "Aunty bought them. I'm as surprised as you are, but a distant relative of ours happens to work for Industrial Illusions."

"Talk about coincidence," Jaden said. "I was about to get everyone on a road trip concerning these."

So the Duel Monster training began…and some of them took it on harder than others.

To be continued…

----

(A/n: Ladies and Gentlemen, Atem has re-entered the fray. Originally, I was going to make a list of OC Cards that will be made in the middle of the chapter, but I decided to make it separate from this chapter. Not exactly the wisest to put it in Mid-Chapter, though…

I've decided to give the Senshi and Mamoru a deck that suits their skills. Here's my opinion on how it should go:

Ami Mizuno: Ice Attribute Deck;

Minako Aino: Seduction of Venus Deck;

Usagi Tsukino: (OC) Shoujo Hero Deck;

Mamoru Chiba: Plant Warrior Deck;

Rei Hino: Fire Attribute Deck;

Makoto Kino: Thundering Nature Deck;

Hotaru Tomoe: Gathering Silence Deck;

Haruka Tenou: Stardust Breeze Deck;

Michiru Kaioh: Aquatic Melody Deck; and

Setsuna Meioh: (OC) Destiny Shoujo Deck.

With the OC Cards I have planned for Jaden, I'm thinking about renaming it the Timeless Conflicted Hero Deck while Ranma has the Chaotic Nature Deck. Atem, however, MAY have some monsters parallel to the GX Heroes' personalities.

Oh, and don't mind the Pseudo Duel. It was a result of Shadow Magic and Youma Traits being used at the same time. Needless to say, the only other thing that can destroy the Five-Headed Dragon would be an Egypian God.)


	5. Waking the Lost Boy

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 5: Training, Newcomers, and Old Ghosts.

(A/n: Okay, this went through my head a couple times, so I'm saying it straight out: I'm putting the Five Synchro Dragons and the 5D's characters in the story.

Before you get the time-period rant on me, I can make the D-Runners and characters fit in the timeline by putting them in Domino City while Jaden was at Duel Academy. For the other four Signers, Akiza's basically Jaden's senior, Jack works as a business partner alongside Kaiba, Leo and Luna are normal elementary school kids, and the Fifth Signer…is a Ranma character, but not one of his fiancées or rivals.

It's called AU for a reason. Besides, in 5D's, SOMEONE would try to take replicas of long-dead duelists from the previous two seasons. I'm just trying to jumpstart the process. However, there's going to be a surprise crossover that I would try not to mess up the balance between Light and Darkness...too much.)

----

On the outskirts of Juuban, a man with a unique motorcycle can be seen approaching it. The motorcycle itself was basically something that came from the future. It was red and a half-circle with unique characteristics. The only thing that someone can make certain on its functions is the Kaibacorp logo.

The rider himself was wearing an indigo jacket, black shirt with a red symbol, blue eyes, and a glowing birthmark on his right arm. His hair was black with a second tone of tan on it, but the helmet didn't show it.

'If Atlus is right,' the man thought, 'then those three and the group of women could be of great help in the future. I just hope I can find their meeting place in time.'

Back in Nerima, Nabiki's arm was glowing in a similar hue.

'Why do I feel like taking a vacation?' she asked herself. 'This didn't happen when Ranma was still around, so why am I feeling like Chaos is afoot?' She then got her bags ready. 'Well, I might as well take Jaden up on his offer. I just hope I can cover my OWN tracks before Akane finds out.'

Kasumi saw what was going on. Now, believe it or not, the clueless housewife was a façade to keep them guessing, but she was actually showing concern for not only Ranma, but Nabiki as well, and both of them were linked to similar destinies.

'I wonder if it's too late to ask Dr. Tofu out,' she thought. 'Since this family's being torn apart because of Ranma and his spirit friends, there's no need for me to take this kind of thing any longer. I might as well help her escape. I just hope Cologne's still in town.'

In the Juuban District itself, Ranma was having his first experience in dueling. Sure, his warriors held the fort ready, but he forgot to take in the fact that Jaden's Elemental Heroes were of the same class, and adding the Neo Spacians, Yubel, and Winged Kuriboh were basically overkill for the Chaos Nexus.

"Not bad for your first try, Ranma," Jaden said. "You got me to take out these monsters early." On his side of the field were Flame Wingman and a Duel Monster that looked like a gigantic version of Frieza.

Ranma smirked. "I'm a fast learner, Jaden," he replied. "Besides, I should thank Atem later for the deck. It REALLY matches my experience in fighting." On his side of the field were Gearfried the Sword Master and the Fiend Megacyber. Both of them were equipped with Warrior-Only items and Gearfried's special ability kicked in for a fallen Neos. Fiend Megacyber was an Effect Monster that brought itself to the field when both Neos and Flame Wingman were on there earlier without a sacrifice.

"Well, I'm afraid the lesson ends right now, because I'm about to bring in a stronger monster. First thing's first, though, I play my third and final Polymerization to fuse Flame Wingman with the Sparkman in my hand to form…Shining Flame Wingman!"

With that said, both Flame Wingman and Sparkman turned into an armored version of his original self with bright lights attached to it.

Ranma was quite surprised at this development. "The light show would give Saffron a run for his money. What does it do, exactly?"

"Glad you asked. Shining Flame Wingman's special ability lets him gain 500 Attack and Defense points for every Elemental Hero Monster in the Graveyard. And you remember Flame Wingman's a striker, right?" Ranma nodded, dreading what happens next. "Well, it's basically the same thing, except the attack is different from Flame Wingman's on its own. Now, let's go! **SHINING FLARE BURST!**"

Shining Flame Wingman had destroyed Fiend Megacyber, but Ranma lost all of his life points.

"That's game, Ranma!"

Ranma smirked. "Well, at least there wasn't honor involved," he said. "I just felt like I was having fun. And you're right. It IS like a form of Martial Arts."

Jaden smirked. "Well, some monsters are Martial Artists themselves, so Atem WAS watching you fight and thought of that factor. Plus, there's one in your deck that's semi-original, but since Industrial Illusions was funded by Konami after Pegasus went back from Egypt, it's basically a stretch, but a powerful asset."

The Martial Artist knew which monster he was talking about. Apparently, it's the only one of its kind considering that Konami has the rights to THAT one.

----

OC Card Data:

Solid Snake.

Attribute: Earth.

Level: 7.

Type: Warrior/Effect.

Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card can only be Special Summoned by sacrificing 3 Warrior Monsters on the field and removing them from play. This monster gains 500 ATK and DEF points for every equip card attached to it and can have up to five instead of the normal three. If this card faces a Machine Monster in battle, the opposing monster loses 500 ATK points. If this card battles a monster whose DEF points are lower than this monster's original ATK, the difference is accumulated to the opponent after the opposing monster is destroyed.

ATK: 2200.

DEF: 1500.

----

Why was there only one copy? Because that card is basically a threat to a Machine monster duelist, and some would plan on taking the Kaiba route (ripping it in two) in order to make sure they weren't a threat. The other copy happens to be in Hideo Kojima's office right now.

"Still," Ranma said, "he's a martial artist himself." Yeah, other than Martial Arts, Ranma was introduced to the concept of Video Games thanks to Atticus. His favorite games happen to be fighting games, and one of them happened to be Super Smash Bros Brawl (and it's a no-brainer there). He DID wonder what would happen if he met any fighters from Street Fighter and King of Fighters…and he didn't want to think about what would happen if he was locked in Mortal Kombat.

However, their conversation was interrupted by a motorcycle (or what sounded like one) approaching. Instinctively, both of them did their usual stances while the stranger appeared in view.

After stopping, both the Duelist and the Martial Artist were surprised at the appearance of the vehicle.

"Never saw a motorcycle like THAT before," Ranma said.

"Neither have I," Jaden commented, "but I like the paint job."

"Thanks," the stranger said. The man took off his helmet to reveal himself. "But I didn't come here to make small talk about vehicles. My name is Yusei Fudo, and I'm one of the few Turbo Duelists that entered the Pro Leagues."

"Turbo…Duelists?" Ranma asked.

Jaden's reaction, however, was one of concern. "Duelists who use a special kind of cycle that engage in high-speed duels when the Speed World card is played," he said. "That's a Duel Runner, or the prototype of the current design, the brainchild of Kaibacorp's newest funding agent, Jack Atlus. As for Yusei, he's basically the next runner-up to be King of Games, other than myself."

Yusei smirked. "At least someone keeps up on dueling in the media," he said, "but did you guys have a training session recently?"

"Mostly," Ranma replied. "And from what I've seen, you've got a restless spirit within your being. What is that?"

"Stardust Dragon. Basically, he's a one-of-a-kind monster that can't exactly stay in one place at a time."

Jaden knew what he was talking about. "Is it the Wind Attribute?"

"Mostly, but he had drawn me here because of a cataclysm that was about to arrive in a couple months. I don't know why, but it involved the Shadow of Necro group that's causing trouble and the unusual Youma arriving."

Although Jaden was engrossed in the conversation, Ranma couldn't help but feel something familiar from this guy…and the glowing arm was basically part of it.

"Are you related by the Tendos, by any chance?" he asked Yusei.

Both of them stared at Ranma in shock.

'He's related to the mallet-wielding woman?' Jaden thought. 'How would THAT question come up in a conversation?'

Yusei's, however, were something completely different. 'How could he have seen it?' "You know someone who has a mark like that?"

"Mark like what?" Jaden asked them.

"Dragon on the Right Arm," Ranma said. "I was just wondering, because Nabiki has a similar one like that."

'He knows the Fifth Signer? How? Why?' "Well, at least she's immune to the Dark Signer taint." Both Jaden and Ranma gave him a confused look. "Is there any place we can have this conversation private? I'll explain it when I get there."

With that, all three Duelists went to the shrine where the meetings were usually held. However, someone else had made it there before they did, and Ranma was surprised as hell on who it is.

"Fancy seeing you here, Saotome," she said. 'I knew he was here. I just had to make the information to a price that not even the Kunos would pay for it.' "I can assume that the women you're hanging out with aren't part of your father's taint?"

'How did Nabiki get here!?!' Ranma thought in a panic. 'Better yet, how does she know about them?'

'Oh boy,' Jaden thought, sighing. 'If she IS the Fifth Signer, I hope she has honor left over from Soun's own taint.'

"Are you Nabiki?" Yusei asked him.

"Yeah," she replied. "And you are?"

"Just someone who knows what it's like to carry a burden." He was motioning to his right arm, much to her shock. "I can assume your Dragon's a water-type?"

"That info usually comes with a price. Besides, I'm pretty sure Yuki wants a match with me."

Jaden groaned. "Fine, but AFTER everyone gets here," he said. "If there are any more surprises around the corner, I'm going to snap."

Start snapping, because what came next was basically part of an unintentional mishap.

"RANMA, PREPARE TO DIE!!!" Uh-huh. Ryoga just entered the fray, and the fight between himself and Ranma continued as they went OUTSIDE the building.

"Oh for the love of…" Without thinking, Jaden stepped in between the two and summoned Neos and Clayman to stop them both. "Is there any reason why you're fighting Ranma on holy ground, jackass?"

"Holy ground?" Ryoga asked him. "I thought I was in Nerima!"

"Wrong district, pig-boy. You're in Juuban."

Ryoga growled. "RANMA, YOU PROMISED NOT TO TELL!"

Ranma groaned. "He knew before I told him, P-Chan! Besides, you promised not to tell AKANE, not anyone who I just befriended!" That was true. He promised not to tell Akane, which led to the mishaps between P-Chan and Ranko when splashed with cold water. However, Ryoga couldn't see Duel Spirits, so it was half-true when he said Jaden sensed the curse.

"DAMN IT, RANMA! BECAUSE OF YOU, I'VE SEEN HELL!"

Jaden was getting tired of this. "Shadow Spell," he muttered. Out of nowhere, chains had appeared wrapping around Ryoga like he was an opposing Duel Monster. "Ranma, take Nabiki and Yusei back into the Shrine. I'm going to knock some sense into Pig Boy here."

"Good luck," Nabiki said. "That's basically saying Ranma's going to give up the Art." Apparently, she had brought up a comeback to the DA Security thing.

"What happened?" Yusei asked the pig-tailed martial artist.

"Long story," he replied, "and you might want to bring a cup of hot water and another with cold water, because it involves that."

As they left, Jaden started dealing with Ryoga struggling in the chains.

"You cheater!" Ryoga yelled.

"I don't cheat," Jaden said, eyes glowing. "I'm just going to have a little talk, and this was the only way I could make sure you don't get lost. I want to know, why do you hold so much contempt for Ranma?" Before Ryoga could explain, Jaden then added, "And don't say that you've seen hell because of him, because if he had intentionally did that, I wouldn't have befriended him in the first place."

Ryoga then started explaining the bread incident, the missed fight, the Junsekyou curse, and basically every other little thing that happened to him.

'Good Lord, he's like a masculine version of Crowler!' he thought. 'Okay…how do I put this so he can open his eyes?' "Uh, from what I've seen, those were YOUR choices. Not Ranma's."

"But it's all his fault!" Typical Hibiki response.

"No, you missed the fight and he had to wait three days for your arrival. THREE DAYS! Not even I can be THAT late! And Ranma was basically WAITING for you to arrive those three days, but his father (God have mercy on his soul right now) kidnapped him on his way to China before the fourth day started. As for the China incident, YOU made the decision to follow him, and look what happened: You're the pet pig of the worst woman I've ever met!"

"TAKE THAT BACK! AKANE ISN'T A SHE-DEVIL!!!"

"Hello?!? She tried to MALLET ME my first morning at the Dojo! Explain THAT to me!" Ryoga had no clue. He was there, but his attention was on Ranma…although he DID see a flying couch that day and assumed he was in Wackyland or something like that (then again, Nerima IS basically Wackyland in Japan. He was thinking he was somewhere in Darkest Africa). "Right. I figured. And the incident with the Card Shop in Nerima. You were THIS close to killing me AND her at the same time! Explain THAT, genius!" Again nothing. His attention was on Ranma…again. "That's what I thought. You know, after all this time, I'm surprised that in your worldwide…or galaxy-wide trek, you never realized that it was basically someone else pulling the strings."

"Isn't that what I was saying!?!"

"Yeah, but you got the wrong offender." Ryoga was confused at that. "On the fourth day, Genma had kidnapped him and taken him to China. However, it wasn't until yesterday that I found out he was in service with another evil being that went by the name of Nightshroud."

Now, Ryoga may have been filled with depression and anger, but he would recognize a name when he heard it. "You mean the Master of Nothingness? THAT Nightshroud?!?"

Jaden was surprised at that part. 'Okay…forget galaxy-wide. This guy's a frigging dimension hopper!' "Yes, THAT Nightshroud. Apparently, Genma and Mr. Tendo were trying to marry both Ranma and Akane in order to bring the man back in a newborn form through their KID. So…had you aimed at Genma, you would've essentially made sure that the curse wouldn't happen and possibly prevent me from doing that to you."

With that news, the cursed pig had frowned. After that explanation, he had realized that what he had been doing this whole time was to break Ranma from the inside-out. Now, he wasn't sure anymore…or he was just unconscious after the realization.

"Did he just faint?" Clayman asked him.

"He'll be fine," Neos said. "While Ryoga was thinking things through, his ki-source had disappeared. Now, it's adjusting to a new source within him."

"That explains why the aura changed," Jaden said, eyes STILL glowing. "I'm just hoping that what's going on within him doesn't exactly destroy us all."

However, he didn't take into factor that someone was watching him.

'Cursed Supreme King,' the man thought. 'You've broken the age-old Hibiki curse! Now we can't use anyone in order to make Master Nightshroud return!' The man left, much to Neos's confusion.

'Was that one of the Necro's Shadows?' Neos thought. "What are we going to do with him?"

"We can't exactly leave him out in the cold," Clayman said.

"Not likely," Jaden said, taking out his cell phone. "Keep an eye out for anyone who ISN'T any of the Senshi, Signers, or Kings. I'm calling up an old friend of mine." 'I just hope I remember his number.'

----

In another household somewhere in Japan, the phone rang. A young girl had picked it up.

"Who is this?" she asked the caller.

"_Is Kyon there?"_

"Kyon just returned. I'll make sure he gets this."

"No need," a man in a green school uniform said. "I'm on another line." Emphasis on the other phone line within the bedroom. "Koizumi, is that you?"

_"Geez…I haven't called you in a long time, and you think I'm someone else?"_

The man blinked at THAT declaration. "Who is this?"

"_Your old dueling partner, remember? Jaden Yuki from the hospital?"_

Now he remembered. "Fine time to call. I just got back from Club Duties and I hurt like hell, so can't this wait another time?"

"_Can't. You still got your Duel Disk?"_

Kyon blinked. "Look, Domino's a half-hour away, and I don't want to know if Haruhi would see another friend of mine OR the spirits possessing you."

"_Uh…Haruhi's not your sister, is she?"_

"Nah, just someone in High School who chose me to be her…" 'How can I put it without freaking him out?' "…keeper."

There was a bit of a pause until… _"Buddy, had you experienced what I went through, you wouldn't know what happened when I became the keeper."_

'Don't tell me…' "By any chance are you watching someone who's basically another person's version of God?"

"_Eh, somewhat, but I'll only tell you MY story if you tell me what happened during my absence."_

"Fine. Just make it quick. I don't know when any of the other SOS Brigade members would show up and ask about this." 'If anything, they'll want me to avoid where HE is at all costs because of his…tenants.'

After a story exchange which took five minutes to comprehend…

"I'm officially freaked out now," Kyon said. "THAT'S what happened when the storm hit? You were in a life or death duel in order to claim the world's worth?!?"

"_I'm as surprised as you are, man. However, we're going to need a combination of Martial Arts and Dueling Skill in order to take THIS enemy down!"_

"Yeah, well, it's not easy babysitting someone who can make my life miserable with a Closed Space, now is it?"

"_Nice comeback, man. REAL classy. If anything, a Closed Space is NOTHING compared to the hazardous air of the Shadow Realm."_

"Right. I've heard about that. The cover-up would have to be that the Holographic Systems were malfunctioning, but Haruhi took it as more than just that. I'm pretty sure she knew about the Soul Stealing incident during Battle City, but no one wanted to confirm it. Heck, even Mystic Sword agreed with her."

"_That reminds me…Battle City 2 is coming up in the Juuban District, which is my current location. I know it's dangerous, but we need your help. Whoever this Koizumi guy is, get his Organization to enter you in while they're taking a tour of the battlefield between the Negaverse and the Senshi. Knowing a girl like her, it would keep her entertained long enough for you to enter the finals."_

'Damn you and your logic.' "Alright, but I'd have to explain to him why I'm doing this. And you KNOW it's been a long time since I've picked up my deck, so I might be a little rusty. And my sister would want to come along for the ride, so…"

"_Yeah, I know. Take her with you, but keep her out of harm's way. Same goes for Haruhi. If you can tell anyone, at least tell the other three members of this SOS Brigade about what's going on. That reminds me, which one's the Time Traveler?"_

"Miss Mikuru Asahina. Why?"

"_Well, she'll back up your claim unless it's classified. If anything, information of the future isn't exactly set in stone, so she may have came from a future where you competed and it benefits the world or destroys it completely. Heck, you remember watching that episode of Dragon Ball Z, right?"_

'Oh, right. What would have been the future changed because of interference from someone already there…and ended up making another one, which would make Miss Asahina double as the Time Traveler AND the Slider.' "Right. Nice talking to you again, Jaden. I'll make sure that Koizumi gets the message." That's when someone stepped out of a taxi nearby. "And that would be him now. See you later."

"_See ya."_ With that, both sides of the phone hung up.

'It would be a good fact that Koizumi was already told of it,' he thought, 'but Miss Asahina considers this as classified info. Then again, you have to break a few rules in order to keep the world safe.' As he was walking down there, he saw that Koizumi didn't have the poker face Kyon was used to. 'Oh, don't tell me…' "I don't know if you'll approve of this or not, but…"

"I know, Kyon," he replied. "And, actually, I'm not surprised. Haruhi was just thinking of entering you in Battle City 2 since you're the only Duelist of the group. However, who was that on the phone?"

Kyon sighed. "An old friend of mine. I'm pretty sure Miss Asahina knows him as a good hero or a destroyer of worlds…"

Before he could finish, Koizumi sat down on a nearby bench. "It's possible, but the future isn't set in stone. Apparently, Juuban has their OWN version of God in their midst."

"You mean Sailor Moon?"

"Yeah, and you're lucky Haruhi isn't chosen as her." 'Lucky, I'm actually thanking someone who ISN'T her that she never got the chance to become…oh wait. Aren't their other systems that may have chosen her? Oh HELL no!' "And I don't think she had a past life in the Silver Millennium OR Ancient Egypt, for that matter."

Silver Millennium? "Explain that to me, please."

"There are recorded and unrecorded parts of history that we're linking Haruhi and others to. Apparently, you're one of the Generals and their version of Cloud Strife. However, the Youma are going to be a problem."

'Like I didn't know that already.' "Bad enough I've been hiding Mystic from Haruhi, but I wasn't sure if she would actually SEE him. I couldn't exactly risk that, Koizumi."

"That's understandable. You've been trying to separate your Duelist Life from your Club Activities. And you won't be the only one competing." Koizumi brought out HIS Duel Disk in response. "I'm going as well. Don't expect me to hold back like I do in Othello." With that, he went back into the cab and drove off.

'Well, he IS an Esper,' he thought. 'I just didn't think he could duel. Now, how do I explain to my sister that I'm going to Juuban? As a matter of fact, how am I going to explain this to Haruhi?'

From the rooftop, a red-haired woman was watching.

'I'm pretty sure you'll figure something out, Kyon,' she thought. 'Then again, Koizumi doesn't exactly have a strong monster like my Black Rose Dragon, but he makes up for his Trap Constraint strategy.' She then disappeared in a burst of fire, much to his confusion.

'I really need some sleep.'

----

During the call time, Jaden had noticed Ryoga stirring from the chains.

"What just happened?" he asked him.

"Oh, your other life source is kicking in," Jaden said. "And the depression and wrath started to disappear. By the way, how can you LIVE with that much depression in your system?"

"I guess I just…kept on moving." He then realized something. "Uh, why am I still in chains?"

"I need to test something." With that, Jaden disarmed the trap. "Walk a straight line for me, please."

"Why?"

"Humor me."

Ryoga growled, but did so anyways. After about five steps, he stopped. "Am I still in Juuban?"

"Yup."

In a moment of joy, Ryoga had made a happy dance that stayed there, much to Neos's annoyance, Clayman's confusion, and Jaden's embarrassment.

"You cured my directional curse! How were you able to do that?"

"Check your pocket for a card," Neos said. "It was a similar move on what we did with Ranma's Neko Ken."

In confusion, Ryoga found the cards that were making him go lost…and looked at them in surprise.

----

OC Card Data:

Misdirection Dice.

Type: Counter Trap Card.

Effect: When a designated monster attacks your monsters, Roll a die. One out of six effects will happen:

If it's a 1, the monster attacks the monster on the far left side of your field;

If it's a 2, the monster attacks the monster on the middle-left side of your field;

If it's a 3, the monster attacks the monster on the middle of your field;

If it's a 4, the monster attacks the monster on the middle-right side of your field;

If it's a 5, the monster attacks the monster on the far-right side of your field; and

If it's a 6, the monster is removed from play.

If there are no monsters on your side of the field on any position, you lose life points equal to half of the opposing monster's ATK points.

Pierce, the Boar of Strength.

Attribute: Earth.

Level: 5.

Type: Beast-Warrior/Effect.

Effect: This monster cannot be destroyed in battle. If this monster successfully destroys the opponent's monster, this monster returns to your hand and two Pig Tokens (Att: Earth; Level: 2; ATK: 300; DEF: 200) are placed on the field.

ATK: 1500.

DEF: 2900.

----

"Whoa. And it was used on Ranma?"

"Mostly," Jaden said. "Cologne helped us out with the basis, and when it comes to Duel Monsters, I'm as adept as HE is with Martial Arts."

"What about the times at Duel Academy?" Clayman asked him.

Jaden growled. "Seriously, Clayman, I had to hide behind my sorrow the whole time, okay?"

Ryoga noticed a bit of a parallel between the young man and Ranma. While Ranma was good with the Anything Goes style, this guy…no, Jaden, had helped him see the error of his ways through this game.

"Looks like I might want to apologize to Ranma, then," he said.

"Alright," Jaden said, "but you might want to tread lightly. From what they've seen, they thought of you as a dishonorable martial artist who's perverted and sleeps with Akane on a daily basis."

Ryoga sighed. "At least I won't blame Ranma this time. And did I see Nabiki in there?"

Jaden nodded. "She's here for the same reason I called my long-time friend and Swordsman Duelist specialist. However, it's going to be hard to vouch for you since we first met at a bad start."

"Yeah, I thought I was in New Zealand, and I gave you the motion that led to this meeting. However, I AM curious about this Duel Monsters thing. Pierce and the Misdirection Dice are basically cards that were linked to both curses?"

"Mostly. However, I can see you lost your Spirit Sight, so it might take a while for it to repair."

Ryoga nodded. "Yeah, I don't think I'm THAT deserving."

With the two starting over, Ryoga's future is brighter. However, back at the shrine…

"A Signer?" Atem asked Yusei. "Never seen one of them before."

"Well, you're looking at two of them, Pharaoh," he replied. "Myself and Nabiki here since she has the Water Dragon."

"This isn't exactly thrilling to hear," Nabiki said, groaning. "I was starting to wonder why my sisters didn't have the same mark I had."

"It's more of a 'gift from God' thing than a blood thing. However, there are darker versions of us that are waiting to appear at a moment's notice, and they take ANY duelist and give them Dark Synchro Monsters. However, it also brings a spirit sense that can be seen from Duelists with Past Lives, like Jaden."

"Huh," Nabiki said. "If he can see Duel Spirits, then I might have underestimated him."

"Funny," Jaden said, entering the room. "I would say the same thing, considering that you've got a powerful dragon on your team. Me? Just assorted heroes and their support cards. So what did I miss?"

"Just an explanation on the Signers," Ranma said. "Atem's just staying at the shrine in order to pay for rent here, and he happened to listen in on the conversation. Now, where's Ryoga?"

"I'm still here, Ranma," Ryoga said, walking into the room. "And I managed to find my way just fine, thank you for noticing."

'This is new,' Nabiki thought. "So, the Lost Boy gained a GPS?"

"More than that. He also gained an apology, considering I was being a…well, dirty pig."

"Say what now?" Yusei asked them.

"Cursed Springs in China," Ranma replied. "I got the girl curse, he got the pig curse. However, some of them tend to mix, like Pantyhose Taro's, for example."

Ryoga grimaced. "That guy was worse than me!"

"In battle or intent?"

"Both, Ranma. Both. Now, can you explain the aspect of the game for me? I might be of some help with what's going on here."

"Alright," Jaden said, "but we have to wait a few hours for a couple friends to arrive. In the meantime, I was about to accept Nabiki's challenge."

The said Tendo Sister smirked. "Remember when I said I was the Ice Queen? Well, my monsters are mostly ice and diamond, so you'll feel a bit of a cold chill."

Jaden smirked. "Wouldn't have it any other way. Besides, I wanted payback for what you did with enrolling me to High School when I'm a Duel Academy Graduate."

Yusei remembered a declaration similar to that from someone he knew. 'Good God, does Akiza know about that?' he thought. "What in the name of God were you thinking?" he said.

"Lowest Grades, the mini-diploma said," Nabiki replied. "I was very skeptical, but I'm not exactly sure if it was the right choice right now."

Ryoga groaned. "Looks like I'll have to attend this city's High School," he said.

'You and me both, Ryoga,' Ranma thought.

'Why bother with stuff you won't need in the future?' Atem thought.

Yusei groaned.

The mysterious figure, however, growled. 'I can't believe that the fifth one was close to home!' he thought. Apparently, THIS guy was from Nerima. 'And it was the Ice Queen, too! I'll have to plan my next move, or else I'll be exposed and blackmailed out of all my cash! No matter. I'll have to get her AFTER she and the Supreme King duel, then Nightshroud would be pleased at my efforts.'

On the ride to the Juuban district, Kyon had shivered.

'I don't know if it's Haruhi or not,' he thought, 'but something really bad is going to happen, and it will involve Jaden.' He then looked at his deck. 'Looks like the Swordmaster will return, only he'll be using a newfound power. So much for Koizumi telling me I'm normal…unless it's to his standards.'

To be continued…

----

(A/n: Yeah…I was insane when I wrote this. Completely and utterly insane in the membrane.

However, I have a good explanation for this:

Akiza and Koizumi are from the same organization. Koizumi was the man who attended while Akiza's been working with Yusei as a Signer, and yes, she IS an Esper…somewhat.

Jaden and Kyon are old friends that met in the same hospital years ago. Kyon can see Duel Spirits and his partner is one of the lower-level Mystic Swordsmen. In fact, he has Level-Up cards and Different Dimension Capsules as well as cards matching the whole basis of the SOS Brigade (Time Machine, Zero Gravity, Eye of Truth, etc…) and also has Haou powers, but they're dormant. REALLY dormant…until the kiss part.

Mikuru's probably related to Setsuna in order to watch her mission, which is Haruhi. I don't know if I could give her an actual Senshi Name in order to observe that Haruhi's fiction video has truth or not.

Ryoko WILL return. She may have been deleted, but there are ALWAYS backup copies involved with programs. Yes, she'll still going to kill Kyon, but he can actually DEFEND himself this time.

As for Haruhi, well…does anyone know about Yubel? Well…replace the monster with a human form and give her an Egyptian past life…oh yeah. You can SEE that I'm insane (when I make Haruhi Mana's current life form. I'd go for Kisara, but she's with Kaibaman in spirit form).

Other than that, here's the Deck Designation list (known characters):

Jaden Yuki: Nature Neos Deck;

Ranma Saotome: Chaotic Nexus Deck;

Kyon: SOS Knight's Army;

Ryoga Hibiki: Lost Boy deck (ideas, people!);

Nabiki Tendo: Ice Queen deck (with a Water Synchro Dragon card related to Yusei's Stardust Dragon, which I may have seen on YuGiOh's Wiki site...);

Itsuki Koizumi: Jinzo's Trap deck;

Usagi Tsukino: Senshi version of the Elemental Heroes Deck; and

Basically, everyone else mentioned in the past few chapters (excluding Genma because HE'S trapped in the Shadow Realm).

Now, the guy was obviously male and from Ranma 1/2, so who do you think it was? (other than Soun or the Kunos. Happosai is exempt because I have another role planned for him that involves Abidos the Third. It's not Mousse, either. Or Ukyo, for that matter)

Pantyhose Taro;

Copy Cat Ken;

Gosunkui (or whatever his name is spelled); or

Ranma's one-time Rivals (name one).

Read and review…and give me some Card Ideas!)


	6. Neos in a Snowstorm

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 6: Jaden vs Nabiki. The Supreme King in the Ice Boundary.

(A/n: Through the reviews I got, one of them said that I got Ranma's personality all wrong. Don't try to report for abuse. Had the guy left an eMail address, I would've said "Thanks for the criticism, but this is AFTER the Wedding Incident…or Obscenity to everything that involves Marital Conflicts. Ranma's maturing…slowly. However, he had the foot-in-mouth disease when he was telling an outsider (Jaden) his life story, so he expected the freak comment very early."

I've ALSO got a few Card Suggestions for Ranma's Deck. Gearfried the Iron Knight and Release Restraint just happen to be two of the cards I've already given him, but I'll make sure it works. Plus, there was the idea of Ryoga being followed by one of the Dodos he met in Wackyland, but I saw the TTA episode on what happens when they stay outside that place for too long, so…no dice. Nice idea for a card, though…or a Duel Spirit, whichever you prefer.)

----

Outside the Shrine, Jaden and Nabiki were facing off against each other.

"I WAS going to face you sometime in Battle City, Yuki," Nabiki said, "but now would be a good time to brush up on my skills."

Jaden smirked. "I'm actually kind of curious, Nabiki," he said. "Just facing off against a new monster gets me riled up, but it's like the time I went up against Dimitri and Kaibaman, only without the fear involved."

Atem hadn't heard of Dimitri, but Kaibaman felt like Seto Kaiba. 'He couldn't have possibly faced off against the Blue-Eyes…could he?'

Nabiki gave her opponent a leering gaze. 'How could he duel against a Monster?' she thought. 'You're going to be one tough puzzle to break, Yuki.' "Should we go with the Battle City Wager, or do we duel for fun?"

"Fun. I haven't decided which card I would wager out. Besides, I got a few new surprises than the ones you usually suspect."

Ranma smirked. 'Figures telling him about Nabiki's network would give him the advantage,' he thought. 'From what I've seen, there's a Spell Card that can negate fusions.'

"Who are you rooting for, Saotome?" Ryoga asked him.

"Normally, I'd go close to home," he replied, "but Jaden's like the Mr. Miyagi of dueling. I should know. I almost got him through trial and error."

Yusei took an odd look at Ranma. "You've seen the Karate Kid?"

"Mostly…only the first one for discipline purposes. I half-way expected the man to be like either Genma, Soun, or Happosai, but he's very disciplined and I was impressed at what he did at the end of the movie."

"I doubt you went with it willingly, did you?" Ryoga added.

"Mom's idea. Genma got the strength of the manly man down, but he didn't know about the discipline one had to face."

Both players had activated their Duel Disks and the life points were set.

"Let's duel!" the both of them yelled.

(Jaden: 4000)

(Nabiki: 4000)

----

Elsewhere, in a certain office, a computer can be seen beeping, confirming a duel was taking place before the time of the Battle City 2 tournament.

"Seto," the computer said, "you might want to take a look at this."

The man at the office had taken notice of it. "What's going on?" he asked the computer. He basically had a white trenchcoat, a locket in the shape of a card, brown hair, blue eyes, and an attitude that irked everyone who dueled against him. This was Seto Kaiba, the 2nd ranked Duelist nationwide, and the only Blue-Eyes White Dragon user in the world.

"Well, there's a duel in progress that's set before the Tournament…"

Before it could continue, Kaiba then said, "Let them duel. Record it for instructional use as a sample."

"Let me finish. You remember the kid that saved your system during the Society of Light fiasco?"

Now, Kaiba was interested. 'Looks like Kaibaman's not such a blowhard after all,' he thought. 'Although I can't help but wonder…' "Who is his opponent?"

"Nabiki Tendo, the Ice Queen. She's basically the only registered Duelist in the Nerima Ward, which is an achievment in itself, and her rarest card happens to be one of the Five Synchro Dragons. However, it's not one of the duels where they have to give them the cards, but one for fun."

Kaiba frowned. He had heard of the Nerima Ward, but he didn't think that their only duelist was actually a competitor. And the Five Synchro Dragons were something he didn't exactly tolerate, considering that all five of them could form the Five-Headed Dragon. "And Yuki's card?"

"Let's see…he has many rare cards, some one of a kind, but the one that's registered happens to be…this is unusual."

"Define unusual."

"Apparently, Jaden's registering the 'Xenomorph Queen' card as the card delivered. Wasn't he an Elemental Hero duelist?"

Kaiba didn't answer. 'This is bad. If he's got a card that's gained from the Shadows of Necro, then he's an immediate target for them to bring it back.' "I need to make a few quick phone calls. Make sure to get every single detail on that duel. I want to know what Jaden has up his sleeve and whether he will succeed."

"And who, exactly, are you calling?"

"Just record every detail of the duel!" Kaiba then used a number he mostly despised, but respected as a fellow duelist over the years. "Yugi, it's me. We have a situation. Bring the mutt and your friends over, and if it's possible, make sure to bring Aster Phoenix and Jesse Anderson here as well. Apparently, a friend of theirs is in trouble, and the Tournament's going to be…earlier than expected."

----

Back at the shrine, the duel had already started.

"Ladies first," Jaden said.

Nabiki smirked. "Well, you know how to make a good first impression. To start, I play Luster Dragon in Attack mode."

A sapphire-covered dragon had appeared on the field.

ATK: 1900.

DEF: 1600.

"I also place one card face-down and end my turn."

Jaden drew his card. 'She won't know what hit her,' he thought. "I place Elemental Hero Clayman in Defense mode."

Ryoga flinched, remembering Clayman. 'His shell's even harder than mine, and I use the Bakusai Tenketsu on Ranma!' he thought. 'And it looks like Ranma might be right about Jaden, but I've seen Nabiki duel in Battle City when I thought I was in a middle of a Godzilla movie.' Ranma noticed the grimace on the sometimes-pig's face. Apparently, he was at the brunt end of the high defense.

"I also thrown down a face-down, and equip Clayman with Clay Wrap, ending my turn."

Nabiki grunted. 'Looks like I may have to bring it out,' she thought. 'Clayman's defense is higher than my own already, but I don't know WHAT Clay Wrap does.' She then drew a card. 'Perfect.' "I play Graceful Charity, which lets me draw three cards and discard two in return. I also play Solemn Wishes, which lets me gain 500 life points for every Draw Phase on my turn."

Ryoga noticed it. 'Same strategy…wait a minute. Didn't she go up against an Elemental Hero user with this kind of thing?'

Ranma was busy paying attention to Ryoga, whose attention was intensely directed on the battlefield. 'What the heck does Ryoga know about Nabs's style?' He then realized who he was thinking about. 'Oh right…this is Ryoga I'm talking about. However, he may have met up with Nabs somewhere else…the question is, where?'

Jaden noticed the similarities as well. 'Gaining life points when drawing cards?' he thought. 'Not one of my usual opponents, but she's basically trying to stay in the game. However, she may have faced someone with Elemental Heroes before…just not one with Neos, Yubel, Kuriboh, Honest, or the newer ones.'

"I now play Scapegoat, which lets me summon four goat tokens on the field, ending my turn."

Jaden nodded, still wary of that face-down. 'Gotta make sure my hunch is correct on this.' "I now use Polymerization in order to fuse Sparkman with Clayman in order to form Elemental Hero Thunder Giant!"

Nabiki smirked. "Reveal Face-Down! Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell!"

That took everyone by surprise. Even Ryoga was now convinced that she had dueled an Elemental Hero Duelist before, but the name escaped him right now.

"Thought you might do that," he said, surprising her. "Reveal Face-Down! R-Righteous Justice! This Spell Card lets me destroy any number of Spells or Traps to the number of Elemental Heroes I control on the field and since Clayman's on the field, I get to destroy your Cursed Seal!"

Nabiki was surprised. 'Okay, I'm now convinced that he's a different kind of duelist.' "You may have destroyed my seal, but you've yet to breach my defenses!"

Jaden gave her a smirk. "Oh please…unless you've got a card that can enhance your Luster Dragon, you can't exactly pierce through Clayman's defenses. Unfortunately, because of the seal, Polymerization was sent to the Graveyard and Sparkman's still in my hand before it became permanent, so consider yourself lucky that Thunder Giant won't be appearing."

'He's got a point. Had he been successful, he would've destroyed my defenses.' "Still, can you keep up with the Ice Queen? I've got enough dirt on you that can last a lifetime."

Jaden sighed. 'She said a lifetime, but I'm sure she meant THIS one.' He then got ready. "I throw down a couple face-downs and end my turn. Your move, Nabiki."

Nabiki smirked. 'It's time that the goats fulfilled their purpose.' She then drew a card, and her deck was glowing due to Solemn Wishes' special ability. "Because of the draw, I gain 500 life points from Solemn Wishes."

(Nabiki: 4500)

"Get ready, Yuki. I sacrifice two of my Scapegoats to summon Levia Dragon Daedalus!"

Jaden remembered that card well… "You're summoning a Sea Serpent?"

"Since I can't cripple your deck, I might as well put a tidal surge through it! I also summon A Legendary Ocean in order to strengthen its power."

With that said, what looked like Atlantis came out of the ground.

"And because of its effect, Daedalus gets a point increase while my other Water monsters get a star decrease, making it easier for me to summon them."

Levia Dragon Daedalus:

Level: 6.

ATK: 2800.

DEF: 1700.

'That means she can bring out as many monsters that are around level 5 like they were normal summons!' Jaden thought. 'And neither Bubbleman nor Aqua Dolphin has high-level summoning requirements, so I'm basically left with just the strength.' "I've faced off against Daedalus before, Nabiki," he said. "You think you can cleanse the field?"

"After I attack. Now, my Leviathan, destroy Clayman!"

With that, she had completely forgotten about Clay Wrap. Luckily for Jaden, Clayman was in defense mode the whole time.

"Thanks to Clay Wrap's special ability," he said, "I get to negate a Spell or Trap when Clayman was destroyed, and I choose your Legendary Ocean!" The Atlantean-esque city had shattered, returning the field back to normal.

Nabiki groaned. 'Suits me for taking the Joey Wheeler approach,' she thought as her ocean disappeared. "Wouldn't matter, because Luster Dragon can finally attack you without setbacks!"

With that said, Luster Dragon started to attack, but…

"Reveal Face-Down! A Hero Emerges!"

Yusei was surprised. 'Who would have thought he had something like THAT on the field.'

Nabiki was surprised at that. 'I didn't expect THAT to happen.' "Let's see...I have to choose a card in your hand, don't I?"

"That's right, and if it's a monster, I can summon it without any setbacks."

Groaning, she had complied. "The one in the middle-left."

Jaden smirked. "You've chosen Elemental Hero Bladedge!" With that, the gold-clad monster appeared where Clayman once stood. "Still want to press your luck there?"

Nabiki frowned. "I'll end my turn by setting a card face-down." 'This guy's countered both my crippling and destruction strategies.' She then noticed that she's got two Scapegoats left. 'Huh…I could make use of them. I just have to find the right card.'

----

In Kaibacorp's mainframe, Kaiba had walked in. Following him were a kid with tri-colored hair, a man with blonde hair and a Brooklyn accent, a man who could be considered 'cone-head' to some, a woman with brown hair, a man with a bandanna and dice-shaped earring, a woman who had a purple vest and blond hair, a man with a business suit, and a man with blue hair. Along with them were a fuzzball and a spirit of a cat (Kuriboh and Ruby Carbuncle) along with Kaibaman and what looked like a cross between a mage and a clock (Time Wizard) in spiritual form.

"What's the big deal about this kind of duel?" the man asked them.

"It's not the duel, Wheeler," Kaiba said. "It's who's dueling. I've looked up both names, and both of them strung a weird chord in my brain, like the Egyptian mumbo-jumbo we used to deal with."

The tri-color haired man knew what Kaiba was talking about. "One of the duelists is Jaden, right?" he asked him.

Kaiba nodded. He and Yugi were still competing for the Best Duelist spot, but he's the closest thing he had to a friend. "The other one happens to be a resident from Nerima and is the only registered Duelist there."

"You mean someone actually DUELS in that place?" the silver-haired man yelled.

"Someone registered…however, there's been a string of disappearances in there, and it's NOT because of a Martial Artist. If it was, the place would be carnage incarnate."

"Wait a minute," Wheeler said. "You're saying that the Shadow Realm found its way there?"

"Worse. It's actually becoming PRESENT due to the mix of hatred and chaos there. It's basically one of the reasons why we have to jump start the tournament date."

"You're insane, aren't you?" the 'cone-head' asked him.

"Not as much as my stepfather, Taylor. Which brings me to the duel. Apparently, Jaden's opponent happens to be Nabiki Tendo, who owns a one-of-a-kind card that could be considered on-par with the Egyptian God Cards."

"That can't be good," dice-ear said.

"Oh, it gets better. I checked her birth records and found out that she had a dragon birthmark on her right arm, so she's the only one who can control THAT dragon. However, when I looked through Jaden's card sleeves, I called you guys because this is a red flag that spells SNAFU for the time being."

Flipping through the sleeves, they found what shocked and disturbed them.

"Damn, that's an ugly-ass alien!" Joey yelled.

"Wait," Yugi said. "It's a corrupted Insect Queen. Why was the name change present?"

"Another reason why I'm starting the tournament faster than usual. It's one of the few monsters that are experiments from the Shadows of Necro."

Everyone else was surprised…well, Aster and Jesse are. Apparently, the veterans noticed a resemblance to the Rare Hunters they were up against LAST time.

"The who?" Aster asked them.

"I suggest you listen to this," the brunette woman said. "It's going to be one heck of a tale."

----

Back in the Duel, Jaden began his turn.

'Okay,' Jaden thought. 'Apparently, she's trying to hold off until she can attack, so I have to use my cards wisely on this. I've been able to counter-act her parts so far, but she showed promise of using cards that would have crippled my deck.'

He then noticed something. 'Why are the Scapegoats still there? I know tokens are mostly used for summoning and support, but…of COURSE! The Face-Down! It could be a kind of Crush Card…or something else. What is it?'

"I play Soul Exchange," Jaden said, playing a card. "This card lets me take two monsters and Tribute Summon another monster. I take your two Scapegoats and sacrifice them both to make Elemental Hero Neos!"

With that, the well-known alien figure had appeared in their place.

'Looks like I might be able to use it,' she thought. 'Apparently, he doesn't realize that by next turn, his best card will be blown to bits.'

'What is she planning?' he thought. 'It turns out the face-down isn't a Crush Card…but it might be a trap, anyways.' "Bladedge, attack Luster Dragon!" Bladedge did so, and it cut a chunk of her life points out.

(Nabiki: 2900)

"What just happened?" Ryoga yelled. "She lost too many!"

Jaden smirked. "That was Bladedge's special ability. When the original ATK points of Bladedge are more than the original DEF points of the targeted monster, it counts as a direct attack."

"You'd be surprised how easy it is to actually accumulate THAT strategy," Ranma said.

"Nice move there," Nabiki said, "but you're still going down." She then drew a card and her tattoo was glowing, much to Yusei's surprise. 'Perfect,' she thought. "Since Solemn Wishes's effect is in play I gain 500 life points. Now I summon Iceshot User Reice, in Defense Mode!"

(Nabiki: 3400)

What looked like a teenage girl in blue armor had appeared, much to everyone's surprise.

'Looks like she's bringing it out,' Yusei thought while seeing his arm glow in a similar hue as hers.

"You're lucky you get to see my monster before the Tournament, Yuki, because this is an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I sacrifice both Reice and Daedalus to summon Brionac, the Dragon of the Ice Boundary!"

Through an icy windstorm, a sea serpent with draconic wings appeared from blizzard clouds.

----

Actual Card Data:

Brionac, the Dragon of the Ice Boundary:

Attribute: Water.

Level: 6.

Type: Sea-Serpent/Synchro/Effect.

Required Monsters: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Monsters.

Effect: Discard any number of cards from your hand to return to the owner's hand the same number of cards you discarded.

ATK: 2300.

DEF: 1400.

(A/n: Editing this after making Part 2. This isn't the real Synchro Dragon, obviously).

----

Yusei now had a weird thought. 'Okay…maybe it's just a weird joke the Crimson Dragon played on us…but she WAS present during the tournament. Still, who would have thought the Fifth Signer had a Sea Serpent as a strong card. Then again, she MAY be hiding something else.'

Jaden was dumbstruck. "I thought you could only Normal Summon ONE Monster on the field."

"You can," Nabiki said, matter-of-factly. "Synchro Summoning happens to be a form similar to Fusion, so it's considered a Special Summoning. Iceshot User Reice just happens to be a component that needed to make it possible, aka, a Tuner Monster. It takes one and a few Non-Tuners in order to successfully summon one."

'Oh, THAT explains it,' he thought. 'Still, it would be nice to know what it can do…and its attack points are substandard. Although…her deck is giving out an odd chill…how is it possible?'

Ryoga frowned. 'Looks like he's bit off more than he can chew,' he thought. 'I'll be amazed if he is able to defy the power.'

"So what?" Jaden asked her. "You can't exactly beat either monster because of the attack point difference…unless you plan to use his Special Ability…"

"Exactly. By discarding an amount of cards in my hand, like two right now, I can bring back two of my cards and put them in my hand. And one of them happens to be the Legendary Ocean!"

Sure enough, the Atlantis-like atmosphere was back.

Brionac:

Level: 5.

ATK: 2500.

DEF: 1600.

"I also equip it with Frozen Reception, in order to increase my Sea-Serpent's ATK points by 300 for every other Ice Boundary monsters in the graveyard and itself."

ATK: 3100.

----

OC Card Data:

Frozen Reception.

Type: Equip Spell Card.

Appearance: Brionac can be seen within the North Pole's icy waters while Dulauren, the Tiger King of the Ice Boundary, is guarding the South Pole with Penguin Monsters running in fear.

Effect: This card can only be equipped to monsters with "Ice Boundary" as their name. Increase your monster's ATK points by 300 for every "Ice Boundary" monsters in the field and graveyard, including itself.

(A/n: Okay, Seiryu's west while Byakko's east, right? Well, it's like that, only with the North and South poles involved with the increase. The penguin monsters happen to be a joke on predatory issues.)

----

"Now Brionac, attack his Bladedge! Blizzard Strike!"

As the blast neared Bladedge and froze the golden hero, it had shattered in pieces.

(Jaden: 3500)

'Talk about a cold reception!' he thought.

"I end my turn, Jaden," she said.

"Right," he said. "My move!" He then looked at his cards. 'Okay, I'm dealing with a monster that's gaining power through her Ice Monsters in the Graveyard as well as a decrease in temperature. But why hasn't she activated her Trap Card yet? Only one way to find out, and that means that I'll have to put faith in my deck and hope I can get out of this snowstorm before I get frostbite!'

To be continued…

----

Nabiki's Deck (so far):

Normal Monsters:

Luster Dragon.

Effect Monsters:

Levia Dragon Daedalus;

Iceshot User Reice.

Synchro Monsters:

Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Boundary;

Dulauren, Tiger King of the Ice Boundary.

Spell Cards:

Scapegoat;

Graceful Charity;

Solemn Wishes;

Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell;

Frozen Reception (OC Card); and

A Legendary Ocean.

Trap Cards:

Blast Held by a Tribute (the REASON why she let him use the Scapegoats in the first place).

(A/n: Change of plans. Nabiki's Deck is now known as the Eternal Winter deck. It's not exactly easy, but I had to do some experiments considering that I'm a bit of an idiot for not realizing that Brionus isn't a Dragon in the first place!

Anyways, Jaden's unaware that she's using the same strategy that she used on Koyo while the original cast (plus Aster and Jesse) are watching this event unfold. He's going to be in for a nasty surprise when he attacks with Neos. Ryoga has an idea, considering he's been everywhere within a day, but wanted to see if it was a repeat of the victory she made. Oh boy…Jaden has a face-down himself that could make it possible to turn the tide of the duel, but will it work?

I got a couple suggestions for Ryoga's deck. Warrior of Zera and Archlord Zerato might be good to summarize his tendency to get lost. I was also thinking of giving him the Rush Recklessly card (not because of the design itself) in order to represent his former tendency to not think things through.

So far, the Spell and Trap cards reflect her personality. Scapegoat represents her blackmail, Graceful Charity represents her information to give, Solemn Wishes happen to be her ray of hope, Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell is her relationship with Ranma, and Blast Held by a Tribute represents what happens when her deals are made.

Any suggestions for anyone else in the chapter? Read, review, and please bring in criticism.)


	7. It Has Begun

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 7: Jaden vs Nabiki part 2. Preparations for Battle City!

----

(Jaden: 3500)

(Nabiki: 3400)

Jaden's side of the field:

Elemental Hero Neos.

ATK: 2500.

DEF: 2000.

One face-down.

Nabiki's side of the field:

Brionac.

Level: 5.

ATK: 3100

DEF: 1600.

Face-down trap (Blast Held by a Tribute);

Solemn Wishes;

Frozen Reception (Equip Spell Card); and

A Legendary Ocean.

----

Tensions between the two duelists were tough. Nabiki was trying to stay in the duel, but she was smirking at the young Hero duelist.

'I don't get it,' Atem thought. 'Nabiki could have attacked Neos in order to make his life points go lower, but why didn't she? Does it have anything to do with that face-down?' He then remembered something from the first Battle City. 'Wait, Ishizu used a similar strategy against Kaiba! That can only mean the face-down is a card that Neos has in his system right now!'

Jaden, however, was thinking similar thoughts. 'Something's not right,' he thought, looking at both his hand and the field. 'It's like she WANTS me to attack her. How? With both the Ocean and Polarity cards, I don't stand a chance against her Sea Serpent of Ice. I'll just have to find out what she wants with me.' "I equip Neos with Neos Force!" he yelled. "This spell card increases his attack points by 800, making him stronger than your Sea Serpent!"

Elemental Hero Neos:

ATK: 3300.

DEF: 2500.

"I now summon Elemental Hero Stratos, in Defense Mode!"

That took everyone by surprise as a cybernetic version of Avian, only in blue, showed up.

"Stratos?" Nabiki and Ryoga asked him.

'I didn't THINK he would summon THAT monster,' she thought. 'Must have seen it coming.' "Looks like you wised up, Yuki," she said. "How did you know about my face-down?"

Jaden smirked and replied, "Well, you LET me have those two Scapegoat tokens for a reason, but I didn't THINK you would have a card like THAT around. Now, because he was successfully Normal Summoned, he can do either one of two effects: He can either destroy a Spell or Trap for every Elemental Hero I control, or I can bring an Elemental Hero monster from my Deck to my hand. However, Neos is considered an Elemental Hero monster as well, and I'll destroy your Solemn Wishes card as well as your face-down trap."

Sure enough, Stratos had done so.

'Well,' Ryoga thought, 'his ability to adapt and counter are better than Koyo's. But how are they connected?'

"Now, Neos, attack her serpent! **SHINING FORCE!**" Neos then destroyed Nabiki's monster, resulting in a loss of life points on her part.

(Nabiki: 3200)

'Good thing that damage was minor,' Nabiki thought.

"I forgot to mention," Jaden said, catching her attention. "Neos Force has another special ability that you should be wary about. When he destroys a Monster and sends it to the Graveyard, the damage is taken out of your life points, but only when Brionac is a normal monster."

Nabiki sighed. 'Lucky me,' she thought. "You got lucky on that part, Yuki, but I'm still in the game."

"I know," he replied. "However, Stratos can attack you directly."

At those words, Stratos had attacked Nabiki, making her life points decrease even further.

(Nabiki: 1400)

"And at the end phase of my turn, Neos Force is sent back to the deck and shuffled, making Neos go back to normal. Your move."

Nabiki drew a card in mild protest. 'Looks like I'll have to bring in Plan B,' she thought. "I play Blizzard Dragon, in Attack Mode!" she yelled. A dragon came out that had a malevolent breeze around it.

Blizzard Dragon.

Level: 3.

ATK: 2000.

DEF: 1200.

"And I use his special ability to freeze Stratos in place!" With a gust of ice and wind, Stratos was immobile. "Now, my dragon, attack! **WYVERN HAILSTORM!**" Blizzard Dragon then destroyed Stratos, making Jaden's life points go down.

(Jaden: 3200)

"I play a card face-down and end my turn. Your move, Yuki."

Jaden was quite surprised. 'I've never even HEARD of these cards before, and I made the mistake of being cocky.' He then drew a card and put it in his hand. 'I hope this works…' "Neos, Attack Blizzard Dragon!"

Before Neos's attack could connect…

"Reveal Trap Card! Hallowed Life Barrier!" Nabiki yelled. Neos had to hit a barrier that nullified his attack.

'Oh, smooth move, Jaden,' he thought, sighing. 'How were you supposed to know she had a card like THAT at hand.' "I end my turn by placing Neos in Defense Mode," he said.

Nabiki drew a card and smirked. "I summon Geomancer of the Ice Boundary, in Defense mode!"

A young girl with a mirror had appeared next to Blizzard Dragon.

Geomancer of the Ice Boundary.

Level: 3.

ATK: 1000.

DEF: 1400.

'What's with the mirror?' Ranma asked himself.

Right now, Yusei's Arm was burning with realization. 'She's going to summon her real dragon this time,' he thought. 'The Sea Serpent was only a lesser version of what's coming up, and now, she's summoning it onto the field.'

Jaden saw it too. 'ANOTHER Tuner Monster?' he thought.

Nabiki's arm was glowing like it hadn't before. "Be grateful that the last monster wasn't what made me a Signer in the first place. I sacrifice both monsters in order to summon Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Boundary!"

Both monsters disappeared within the mirror and the air got colder. From the sky, a dragon that had a clear-blue body and red and blue wings had appeared from the broken mirror.

----

Actual Card Data:

Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Boundary.

Attribute: Water.

Level: 7.

Type: Dragon/Synchro/Effect.

Required Monsters: 1 Tuner + 1 or more Water non-Tuner monsters.

Effect: Activate by discarding 2 cards from your hand to the Graveyard. Then, select an equal number of cards on your opponent's side of the field, and destroy the selected cards. This effect can only be used once per turn.

ATK: 2500.

DEF: 1700.

(A/n: THIS is the Water Synchro dragon that made her a Signer in the first place. I had no idea that a Water Synchro Dragon existed until now.)

----

"Jaden, be careful!" Yusei yelled, notifying him. "Gungnir is a very powerful monster that can cripple your deck if you're not lucky!"

"Right," he said, uncertainly. 'What can this thing do that would make anyone shiver in fear?'

"Since he's a water monster," Nabiki said, "he gets an attack increase from Legendary Ocean's effect."

Gungnir:

Level: 6.

ATK: 2700.

DEF: 1900.

"Second, by discarding two cards from my hand, I can use Gungnir's special ability and destroy your Face-Down and Neos!"

'What!?!' Jaden thought as the cold air destroyed both Neos and his face-down, which was Cocoon Party.

"Now, normally, I'm not allowed to attack on the same turn I Synchronize, but I play Brave Attack in order to make it happen. Attack him, Gungnir! **FREEZING VICTORY!**" Gungnir had attacked him directly, making Jaden feel the cold air.

(Jaden: 900)

"Your turn, Jaden," she said, "but I suggest you surrender."

Jaden growled. "Nabiki, it's not over until the last card is played!" he yelled, drawing his card. 'Right. I think I can make this work.' "I play O-Oversoul, which lets me bring a Normal Elemental Hero monster from the Graveyard back to the field, and I choose Elemental Hero Neos!" Neos went back from the grave, angrily staring at the face of Gungnir.

"What good will that do?" she asked him, mockingly. "My Dragon's already destroyed your alien once before."

"That's because he didn't have the right kind of power yet." That shocked her. "Since Neos was considered a Special Summon, I can still do one more Normal Summon, and I bring out Neo Spacian Aqua Dolphin!" An anthropomorphic Dolphin had appeared beside Neos. "And thanks to your Legendary Ocean, Aqua Dolphin gets an increase in Attack and Defense Points."

Neo Spacian Aqua Dolphin.

Level: 2.

ATK: 800.

DEF: 1000.

"Either way," Nabiki said, "Flipper's not exactly strong enough to take on Gungnir."

"No, but he and Neos TOGETHER will be when they fuse."

Ranma was surprised. 'He's fusing WITHOUT Polymerization?' he thought. 'How can it be possible?'

"But you can't fuse without Polymerization!!!" Nabiki yelled.

Jaden knew she was out of the loop. "Let me tell you a story about how I got Neos and his pals, then," he replied. "When I was a kid, I was the grand-prize winner of Kaibacorp's Duelist-In-Space giveaway. I had won that privilege, and during their time in orbit, they started to grow and turn into actual Duel Spirits and cards. Years later, I had lost the ability to look at my cards, and during my trip into Neo Space, I had met Aqua Dolphin and faced off against the Society of Light's drone, terrorizing the place. It was then that I learned that Neos and the six Neo Spacians I had can fuse WITHOUT Polymerization, and I'm about to show you how! CONTACT FUSION!"

Atem smirked. 'Looks like Yugi was right,' he thought. 'He IS King of Games material.'

"Elemental Hero Neos and Neo Spacian Aqua Dolphin now fuse into Elemental Hero Aqua Neos!"

The dolphin and Neos had turned into what looked like a combination of the two monsters.

"Since Aqua Neos is a Water Monster, he gets the bonus from Legendary Ocean."

Elemental Hero Aqua Neos:

Level: 6.

ATK: 2700.

DEF: 2200.

"However, I'm using his Special Ability right now. By discarding one Card from my hand, I can select a card from your hand and destroy it!"

Aqua Neos used a sonar attack from it, creating a disruption in Nabiki's hand and removing the card, which was Deck Destruction Virus.

'And that was to cripple his deck, too,' she thought. 'What exactly are you, Jaden Yuki?'

"I also play H-Heated Heart in order to increase my Monster's ATK points by 500."

ATK: 3200.

"Aqua Neos, attack her Gungnir! **NEPTUNE'S AQUATIC RETRIBUTION!**" Aqua Neos did so and destroyed her dragon, making the glowing on both Nabiki's and Yusei's arms stop.

(Nabiki: 900)

"My final card played would be E-Emergency Call, which lets me bring a Monster from my Hand to my Deck, and it's Elemental Hero Bubbleman. And since Aqua Neos is returning to my Fusion Deck, I get to draw two cards. Now, you're up, Nabiki."

Nabiki then drew a card, much to her surprise. 'I could make a counter-attack, but what's to stop him from activating something that could keep me from playing? Then again, he ISN'T Koyo.' She then placed the card on top of her deck. "I surrender, Yuki. You win."

Jaden was surprised. "I accept your surrender, Nabiki," he said.

The holograms disappeared, much to everyone's surprise. Especially Ryoga's, since he knew Nabiki would turn the tide of the duel into her favor in an instant.

"Ryoga," Yusei said, "I think you have something to tell us."

Ryoga sighed. "Well, it's safe to say that I've seen Nabiki duel before," he said, "but I didn't think I was in Domino City at the time…"

----

In the Kaibacorp mainframe, they were surprised that the Duel Ended that fast.

"Talk about an upset," Mako said. "From what I saw in her hand, she could have turned the duel in her favor."

Joey then realized something. "What DID she have in her hand?" he asked Kaiba.

Kaiba noticed it as well. "It's called Cold Enchanter," he said. "However, she decided to take it easy on the kid, considering she never went up against a monster of Neos's caliber."

"And don't forget about her Legendary Ocean card," Mako said. "As a fellow Water-Attribute Duelist, she can summon Level 5 cards like they were Level 4 monsters, so she had something similar to my Legendary Fisherman."

Yugi was surprised. "Joey gave his back to you?" he asked him.

"A long time ago," the fisherman replied. He then turned to Joey and said, "You didn't have to do that, really…"

Joey shook his head. "I had to," he said. "After Battle City, I bought myself another one, and since yours is a representation of your Father's spirit, well…"

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Just be glad you have your trump card, Tsunami," he said. "You're going to need it because of the hazard system I set up in Battle City 2."

"I still say it's suicide," Aster said, shaking his head.

"Well, don't complain. I brought you all here to be Enforcers in case they do something stupid. As for Aster, Jesse, the mutt, and Yugi, we're going to be facing the Champion after the Finals are over."

Joey bristled at the mutt comment, but Jesse had to ask. "What do you mean 'Facing the Champion'?"

"After Battle City 2 is over, the Finalist who made it through has to duel the Top 5 Duelists in ascending order. The fifth-ranked duelist is first, followed by Rank Number 4, then Number 3 followed by myself, and finally, they get the chance to duel the King of Games himself."

They were surprised at that development.

"Where'd you get THAT idea?" Tristan asked him. "Sounds like something from a Video Game."

"Mokuba made that input," he replied to the non-experienced Duelist of the group. "He got the idea from playing those Pocket Monsters games, and I went with it to make the Duelists more ambitious and cunning in order to get to the finals." That made everyone in the room face-fault. "As for everyone else, the Enforcers, should things get a little too rough and an offense has been made that's against the rules, have to Duel the offendor (or tag-team if there's more than one) in an Elimination Round in order to keep their right to duel. It's to make sure that guys like Bandit Keith don't take advantage of the duel."

"There's still the fact that Weevil's entering," Tea said. "Aren't we going to stop him?"

"Until his duel is over. Besides, Mokuba's going to be dueling alongside you guys. Oh, and I suggest that you make and modify your decks, and that goes double for Gardner and Taylor. Joey, I may need your sister along for the ride."

"WHAT!?!" Joey yelled. "Kaiba, you're crazy! From what I know, those Necro guys happen to be based off my Red Eyes and…"

"And from what I've seen from her duel with Nezbit, her Shadow Tamer's vital against some of the more ruthless Fiend-users. Heck, Bakura's Dark Necrofear could be used AGAINST him if used right. You're going to be the one that teaches her how to."

Joey sighed. "Right, but only against NON-Shadowy Fiend users. I'm not putting her in the line of fire like Mokuba is."

"If only Zane was here to help us," Aster muttered. They had taken the explanation of the Shadows of Necro to heart, and to Aster, they were like a darker version of the Society of Light.

"If you'll excuse me," Kaiba said, "I'm going to make a phone call to Pegasus about recent developments. Feel free to use the Duelist Simulator, but don't touch any of my cards!"

Everyone gulped at that. Never try to steal his Blue-Eyes or you'll regret it.

----

"NO WAY!!!" Jaden yelled to Nabiki after the Lost Boy told his story. "You fought Koyo and won!?!"

"Somehow," Ranma said, shrugging, "I'm not surprised. You always COULD cover your tracks better than I did."

"Doesn't exactly stop everyone else from Nerima into trying," Nabiki said. "Something weird is going on, and from what I've seen, my first impulse was to get out before something bad happened."

"Gungnir led you here because he felt you were needed, right?" Yusei asked her. The Ice Queen had nodded. "AND you've already registered yourself in Battle City 2, right?" Again, she nodded. "Right. Well, I don't know about any of you, but I'm registered already."

"So am I," Jaden said.

"I'm there as well," Ranma said, scratching his forehead. "I don't know why, but Jaden talked me into it saying that I didn't know until I tried."

Atem blinked. "Funny. I registered myself as Gintaro Daimon," he said.

"Did better than I did," Yusei said. "I went as Yusei Adams thanks to a friend of mine."

"However," Jaden said, motioning to Atem, "you stick out like a sore thumb, considering that your hairstyle is a match to Yugi's own."

Atem was a bit embarrassed at that. "I haven't thought that far ahead yet."

Ryoga was quite surprised. "I, um…haven't registered yet."

"That's because you don't have a whole deck yet," Jaden said. "You've seen what a duel is like, but you need a deck with at least ONE Rare Card in it."

The former Lost Boy knew that. Pierce would count as a Rare Card, but would he try his luck with it?

----

Elsewhere, the car that had two guys and four girls had parked into a mansion lot.

"This is the place?" the man in the school uniform asked his friend. He asked that because the mansion was borderline creepy.

The friend gave a smirk. "You act surprised, Kyon," he said. "This IS the place closest to the Juuban District my relatives live in."

"You have a lot of relatives, Itsuki," the girl with the gold band said. "And with surprising connections, too."

'Figures that Haruhi would be excited about Holographic Monsters battling each other,' Kyon thought, looking at his Duel Disk.

"Well, I'm just lucky to have as many as I can," Itsuki replied.

'And that would be Koizumi's usual response. I just hope we don't have another "Murder Mystery" scenario like we did LAST time.' That was pretty embarrassing, considering that the murder was a set-up to enthuse the resident Goddess. 'I just hope nothing can go wrong this time…'

Little did they know that someone…no, SOMETHING was watching them from afar, and they didn't have their eyes on Haruhi. No, his lock was focused on the Esper.

'Looks like Asakura was right,' it thought. 'Nightshroud would be surprised that one of my card-holders would be someone special.'

Kyon had that feeling that something was about to go wrong. He had it ever since he met Haruhi, but this was connected with a form of déjà vu that was aimed at someone OTHER than the resident Goddess.

'Something big is going to happen,' he thought, 'and Haruhi's not going to be involved with THIS development, even though this woman is the definition of weirdness…'

----

Setsuna, however, had been looking through the Time Gates in secrecy.

'Looks like Nabiki's more of an integral part of the world's safety than I originally believed,' she thought. 'With her Ice Boundary cards, she's not going to cause the Great Freeze to kill of the world, but to bring a cold wave to our enemies.' She then took note of the newcomers, but kept her focus on Haruhi and Kyon. 'Those two happen to be wild cards. The man is connected to Jaden's destiny while the girl has a similar aura to Atem…but how is it possible?'

She then exited through a portal leading to her bedroom and took out a V1 Duel Disk with a deck that's radiating with silver energy.

'Looks like I'll have to support Kaiba on his idea,' she thought. 'I just hope I can make the Quarterfinals for this one. All I have to do is make a few observations...'

----

Meanwhile, in what used to be Beryl's palace, a man with a mask similar to the Red Eyes Darkness Dragon had noticed the change.

"It is time…" was all he said.

To be continued…

----

Nabiki's Deck (so far):

Normal Monsters:

Luster Dragon.

Effect Monsters:

Levia Dragon Daedalus;

Blizzard Dragon;

Geomancer of the Ice Boundary;

Iceshot User Reice.

Synchro Monsters:

Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Boundary;

Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Boundary (Signer Card);

Dulauren, Tiger King of the Ice Boundary.

Spell Cards:

Scapegoat;

Graceful Charity;

Solemn Wishes;

Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell;

Frozen Reception (OC Card); and

A Legendary Ocean.

Trap Cards:

Blast Held by a Tribute;

Deck Destruction Virus;

Hallowed Life Barrier.

(A/n: All the players are coming together, and Jaden won his duel against Nabiki through forfeit. Meanwhile, Kaiba sets the date a little early while explaining the Champion of THIS particular Battle City gets to face Jesse, Aster, Joey, Kaiba, and Yugi (in that order). Meanwhile, a mysterious Duel Monster sets his sights on Itsuki Koizumi, Setsuna prepares herself for the competition, and Nightshroud has made his first visual appearance in the story.

I guess I have some explaining to do…well, I originally intended Nabiki to have Brionac as her Signer card, but when I first saw Gungnir, I had to change it to that. I said it was AU, and I'm keeping it that way.

Oh, and Gintaro Daimon is a reference to the Japanese version of YuGiOh 5D's. Atem's using that Alias while Yusei got the short end of that deal…

As for the Mysterious Duel Spirit, those who watched the episode of GX where three Obelisk Blue studens use a Quija board to summon a Duel Monster, well…Koizumi's got a Trap Clencher deck already, but he's going to be gaining a little something…extra.

I know it was disappointing that I ended the duel between Jaden and Nabiki to a draw, but if she had continued, Jaden would have used HERO Flash to end it. Koyo happens to be the man who gave Jaden his deck after dying in an accident, according to the GX Manga.

What's most likely going to happen is that Tea gets a Magician Deck, Tristan gets a Machine/Warrior Deck, and Serenity gets an Archangel Deck. And the Dark Synchro monsters happen to side with the Shadows of Necro.

Other than that, I'm thinking of having Jaden duel a certain Bug Duelist we all know and hate while Ranma's facing Koizumi/Jinzo. Right now, suggestions are mostly appreciated for other duelist match-ups that could take place later on as well as deck combinations.

Until then, Read and Review.)


	8. Jaden's Thriller Night

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 8: Battle City Begins. Enter the Avatar...wait, WHAT!?!

----

Outside the Juuban District, a cloaked man in a cape and a mask with a spade, heart, diamond, and club appears on one of the buildings.

'This is the place the tournament's held?' the man thought. 'Not exactly the best idea that came out of Kaiba's head, but he didn't expect someone like me to appear.'

"State your name and business, stranger," he heard a man say. Turning around, the masked man saw someone in a tuxedo and mask that could be taken as sunglasses.

"My name is of no concern to you, Tux-Boy. But if you want, just call me Avatar. As for my business, I'm just here to compete and make sure that the Forces of Evil don't get their hands on the Divine Cards."

"Divine Cards?" Tuxedo Mask was surprised. He didn't expect a vauge answer like that, but he has a good idea what he's talking about. "You're not after them yourself, are you?"

"Even if I were, I wouldn't control them without going mad. Just be glad I'm here to help your cause, Endymion. I'll be off."

"WAIT!" Before Tuxedo Mask could ask any more questions, Avatar had disappeared through a trap door.

_How does he know my Silver Millennium identity? Better yet, does he know what's going on in this city?_

The next morning, Jaden woke up early to scope out the competition. It may not be like him to do so, but mention food and dueling to him and he's a live wire.

_The competition is REALLY extended for this kind of thing,_ he thought. _I can't exactly wait for this to begin. The anticipation is making me STOKED alone!_

"What the...Slacker!?!" He heard a familiar voice say.

In surprise, Jaden turned around to see an old friend of his wearing a black school uniform. "Chazz? That you?"

"Who else has Ojamas in their deck," the man replied. "But in all seriousness, we all thought you were dead."

"It'll take more than just Nightshroud to kill me, and I wouldn't exactly miss a competition like this for a lifetime." Jaden smirked. "By the way, how's your deck? Upgrade it recently?"

Chazz groaned. "Had to get newer Ojama cards in order to support the three I already have. Luckily, I kept my Armed Dragon, Light and Darkness Dragon, Clthlonians, and Scorpion Gang intact in order to confuse my opponents. Believe me, three are annoying enough, but having a whole rainbow of them is just overkill. You?"

Jaden grinned. "Newer Elemental Heroes and door-prizes from Pegasus himself after winning first place...like with Kaibacorp's contest. Believe me, I've discovered the concept of Synchro Monsters VERY early."

"Lucky you. I'm just angry I don't have monsters like your Winged Kuriboh as partners."

Before Jaden could retort, Ranma had noticed their conversation. "Sorry about that," he said. "It's more crowded than I thought." He then noticed the newcomer. "Who is this?"

"Chazz, this is Ranma Saotome," Jaden said. "Ranma, Chazz. He's basically someone who learned how to duel through experience alone."

"Wait a minute," Chazz said. "You're THE Ranma Saotome? The walking Chaos Magnet?"

Ranma groaned. "I'm trying to put that part of the past behind me. And you're Jaden's friend?"

"Rival, actually. And I'm quite surprised that a martial artist like you is in a Dueling competition. Then again, you DID make the Ojama trio of annoyance hide in my deck from fear, so you're not all bad."

"That explains the look on their face when they saw Mirage." Yeah, Ranma and Chazz noticed the spirit connection right away. "They thought I was going to go berserk on them."

"Hang on," Jaden said, motioning to Ranma. "Where's Ryoga? I thought I had cured him of his directional curse."

"You did," Ryoga said, arriving with Kyon. "I just met a friend of yours that has a spirit of a swordsman."

"Truth be told," Kyon said, "I was hiding from a couple friends of mine after my last-minute preparation duel with the Club Leader. Right now, they're given the tour of Juuban and one of my friends went missing."

Jaden knew which club he was talking about. "Right, well, I'm just surprised that you made it without a scratch."

Kyon chuckled. "Without? I'm just glad she let me use her rarest card. However, if I lose it, she'll give me the death penalty."

"What kind of friend does that?" Ranma asked him. "Oh, I'm Ranma Saotome. If you meet anyone from Nerima, sorry about their behavior."

_Oh, so THIS is Ranma,_ Kyon thought. "I'll keep that in mind. Now, we just found out the tournament was jump started to this date. And...what's with the Looney Tune on your shoulder, Ryoga?"

Ryoga growled. "This, apparently, is a souvenir from Wackyland in Card Form," he said.

"Pleasure to meet those who have the sight," the strange creature said. "Your friend's really lucky, because he had nabbed me, the Last of the Dodos."

----

OC Card Data:

GoGo the Village Underdog.

Attribute: Wind.

Level: 2.

Type: Beast/Effect.

Effect: FLIP: If this card is destroyed by a monster while face-down, both players must re-shuffle their hands and Graveyards into their decks and draw 6 cards. The owner of this card has to summon it from their Deck or Hand onto the field face-up in DEF mode after reshuffling. The Opponent's turn ends.

ATK: 250.

DEF: 500.

----

Ojama Yellow recognized him immediately. "Well if it isn't our old pal, Gogo," he yelled.

"Your Monster knows mine?" Ryoga asked Chazz.

"Unfortunately, it looks like it," Chazz said, groaning. "And it seems that they're old prankster friends."

"I just realized something," Kyon said. "Ranma and Ryoga are kind of fresh for this tournament. What kind of cards are they donating?"

Ranma shrugged. "My Sacred Phoenix, because I get bad memories from Junsedo."

"Mazera DeVille," Ryoga said.

"Looks like it's just me and Gilford the Legend," Kyon muttered. _I really have to thank Haruhi for her card. It's a bit of an anti-thesis to the Blue-Eyes, but I'll have to keep it intact. Then again, does Jaden have a Rider Hero card like I do?_

"Looks like everyone you met has a spirit with them," Chazz said to Jaden.

Jaden nodded, frowning. _Who knew that there were people that would take drastic measures to separate the bond between Spirit and Duelist?_

Listening to their conversation, a man in a black jacket and dragon shirt noticed the gathering.

_I wonder if it's time to show myself to them?_ he thought. _No, Pegasus said for me to keep to the down low and look for members of the Shadows of Necro. Then again, he only instructed Avatar to do so. He didn't say anything about the Dragon Duelist from America._

The man then walked up to them and said, "Mind if I join the conversation?"

All five of them looked to see the man walking towards them.

"And you are?" Ranma asked him.

"Where are my manners? I'm Andrew, and I couldn't help but notice a conversation between friends."

Jaden just gave him a slight frown. "Well, your Japanese seems to be fluent, but I can't be too sure if you're one of the few that would take advantage of a Champion Status."

Chazz noticed it as well. _The Slacker's acting like he did around Honest disguised as Fujiwara,_ he thought. _Then again, there's something about that guy that's...off. WAY off._

"Not every champion's a cheater like Bandit Keith and Weevil. Speaking of the little bug, he just happens to be in the tournament himself."

_He didn't deny it,_ Jaden thought. "Can't be too careful. There's not a lot of people we can trust around here."

Andrew noticed the power that was radiating off of the young Slifer. _That's the Supreme King? I'll have to wait until the finals._ "Huh...and I was hoping I could make a few friends."

"You're doing a bad job of it," Kyon said. "However, any advice you can tell us that might be useful?"

"Yeah: Keep your decks close to you at all costs. You never know WHO can strike and how they'll do it. Now, I'll see you in the finals...IF you heed my warning." He then left the room. _So much for THAT attempt. Oh well. There's always the finals, and if I can, I'll have to face the Supreme King myself._ His eyes within his glasses turned from a lively jade to a pale blue. _And in the process, I'll pick off the worst of the Shadows of Necro._

"Can he actually KEEP his promise?" Ranma asked them.

"I'd be surprised if he did," Chazz said. "Then again, this guy's got methods to keep his Dragon Deck safe."

"Wait," Jaden said. "That guy's a Dragon duelist?"

"One of the best from America. Heck, he even has more Dragons than I do, and I'd be surprised if someone was on the brunt end of his Victory Dragon."

"Victory Dragon?" Ranma and Ryoga asked them.

"Basically an instant-kill Dragon that's the rarest of its kind," Jaden said. "However, I AM kind of wary of this guy."

"How so?" Kyon asked him.

"Did you see his deck holder?" Noticing their confused looks. "He's got the Deck he's famous for along with other cards that have an unnatural power. I'm starting to think he's a Haou himself."

"You serious?" Chazz asked his friend. Jaden nodded. "Isn't that against the rules?"

"Not entirely. Maximum of decks happens to be two: One deck you've used for your dueling career, and another that you can choose to use for the finals. If anything, he'll be using his Dragon Deck...on opponents I wouldn't know of. However, exchanging card sleeves between decks during the duel are against the rules and result in expulsion. I'm thinking he's keeping his priorities straight in order to face us later on."

Chazz nodded. "Still, what did he mean by keep your decks close at all costs?" he asked the resident Haou.

Before anyone could answer THAT question, there was a slight interruption that came in the form of audio.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting," a familiar voice said to them. "I just had to make some last-minute preparations for this occasion."

Jaden recognized the voice. "Kaibaman?" he asked himself.

Chazz shook his head. "No, that's his duelist self," he said to Jaden. "Then again, they DO sound alike as well as sharing the same deck."

"But where's it coming from?" Ranma asked them.

"Don't tell me that he's pulling a Kuno," Ryoga said, muttering.

_Wait a second…_ Kyon thought. "Up there!" he yelled, pointing at a nearby blimp.

Everyone was amazed…except for a certain Pharaoh in the stands.

_Bringing out the blimp, Kaiba?_ He thought. _Seriously, you're pulling the same things out of a recycled hat, so why am I not surprised that the decisive matches are on the blimp?_

Luckily, Kaiba wasn't a mind-reader.

"I'm pretty sure you're wondering why I'm advertising from a blimp like in the LAST Battle City," he said. "As you're probably guessing, it's basically where the finalists are eliminated, but we're going through the set rules first. As you can see, all the finalists have a Locator Card at hand. Like the last tournament, you need up to six Locator Cards in order to find the set location on the map. However, it won't be just from the Duelists you face that you'll gain them."

Atem was surprised. _Then what exactly are the other Locator Cards coming from?_

"One of the reasons why I opened this tournament in the Juuban District is because of the many hazards you'll face, it's the Duel Youma that's probably the biggest threat."

_Oh, THAT'S surprising,_ Andrew thought. _You just blurted out the main problem this city's facing, Kaiba! How are you going to protect the weaker duelists?_

"Once you defeat a Duel Youma, you'll earn a Locator Card and the Card the monster was based off of, unless you've managed to beat them already. Otherwise, you're going to have to get through the Eliminators I hired."

_Eliminators?_ Atem asked himself.

"Why the extra stakes? Because the winner of the Battle City Tournament MK II will get the chance to duel the Top Five Duelists in an Elimination Match."

That got everyone's attention.

"That's right. You'll be facing the best duelists from Number 5 to the King himself. However, don't think you'll be able to face Yugi without facing me, and if you can't tell, in order to face me, you'll have to duel Wheeler after dueling Phoenix, and you start off with facing Anderson."

_With that kind of challenge,_ Jaden thought, _you'll be able to have the whole city falling. However, I've already faced your deck, Aster's, and Jesse's. It's Yugi and Joey that I'm itching to duel._

Atem had the same thoughts. _That would get everyone interested, but if anything, you set up the tournament to draw out an evil. But what are you drawing out in the first place?_

"Now, as for your deck, the rules that were in the Original Battle City still stand. However, unlike the recent rules, your Extra Deck can have up to 40 cards instead of fifteen. You still have to hand over your rarest card as a trophy, but if the loser has a card won from the Duel Youma, they are to hand them over instead of their rarest card. Now, duel strong. I'll be waiting." With that, the blimp left the city and everyone cheering in joy.

"If you'll excuse me," Chazz said, "I'll be looking for opponents. See you guys in the finals."

"Later," Kyon said to him. Turning to the others, he then waved goodbye. "Well, duty calls. I really don't want to get the Death Penalty from Haruhi."

"I need to move as well," Ranma said. "I'll see you guys later."

Ryoga and Jaden nodded, doing the same.

"Jaden," Yubel said, "there's something off about this tournament."

"I know," he replied. "From what Atem told us, Kaiba set a previous Battle City up in order to draw out an organization known as the Rare Hunters. Could he have known about the Shadows of Necro, too?"

"If that's the case, then I'll make sure to take out anything that smells like Darkness."

Jaden stopped right then and there. "How can anything smell like Darkness?"

"You know what I meant. Impure, hostile, basically a human filled with Shadow Energy that matches my own."

However, a scream of terror had stopped their conversation.

"I know that scream anywhere," he said.

Having been inside Jaden for more than a year, Yubel was in tune to Jaden's recent memories…mostly. Sounds were what she recognized the most. "Isn't that the kid who hung out with you at the Academy?" she asked him.

"I hope not." With that, the young Duelist raced over to the source of the sound.

Much to Jaden's surprise, it was. "Let go of Syrus, you creep!" he yelled at the hooded man.

"Jaden!" the light-blue haired duelist said. "It's a trap!" At that moment, while Syrus was in a cage, Jaden found himself locked into the…sidewalk? Wait, it was a platform, and this guy's on one as well.

"Ah, Jaden Yuki," the man said. "I've been waiting for this moment for a while."

"Who are you, and how do you know my name?" Jaden asked the hooded man.

"Don't you remember your surrogate older brother, Jaden?"

Jaden was confused…until he recognized the cards. "Clowns? Wait, you're…"

"Yes, it's me. And right now, you don't stand a ghost of a chance."

----

Through the monitor, Kaiba could see the first duel in progress. However, something wasn't right.

"Master Kaiba," the woman said. "The first duel happens to be between Osamu and Jaden Yuki."

"Huh," Kaiba said, in a classic thinking pose. "What are the cards in the duel? I'm well aware of Yuki's Xenomorph Queen."

After a few keystrokes, they found out the card in use…but were surprised. "Apparently, it's not in the database."

_Not in the…_ Kaiba thought. "What do you mean, not in the database?"

"I'm saying that the card in use is not part of the new card packs Pegasus released."

Kaiba was surprised. "Send the nearest Eliminator to monitor the progress of the Duel. If my hunch is correct, Yuki's facing off against one of Yugi's old opponents."

"Yes, Master Kaiba. I'm sending Eliminator Devlin to his location."

_I hope Yuki can defeat him,_ Kaiba thought. _If my hunch is correct, the Shadows of Necro happen to be using the same guy that foolishly used my Blue-Eyes White Dragons all those years ago…_

"Looks like they're setting up an attack already," a newcomer said.

Without turning around, Kaiba then said, "You must be the guy Pegasus himself sent."

"Indeed. And from what I've seen, it's turning from a tournament into a war zone."

"Cut to the chase. What did Pegasus find out about the Shadows of Necro?"

"Pull up a chair, because you're not going to believe some of the members that just joined."

"Believe me, Avatar, I think I already found one of their agents."

Kaiba's contact…happened to be the man in the Four Suits mask.

----

Back in the city…

"I don't know who you are," Jaden yelled, "but you sure as HELL aren't Osamu."

"People change, Jaden," the man replied. "After what your monster did to me, the fires of Hell couldn't keep my vengeance at bay."

"You know this guy, Jaden?" Syrus asked him.

Jaden growled. "It's not the man I knew as a brother, Sy. Don't let him fool you."

"Oh come now. You should remember the reason WHY you sent her to the stars. Then again, without her, I wouldn't imagine what kind of defeats you faced."

"Shut it, you faker! I don't know what you're trying to pull, but using one of my friends as bait, insulting my Monsters as well as my skill as a Duelist, and impersonating someone who I deemed close in my youth is enough to insult those who would cross your path!"

The hooded figure smirked. "Then if you win, I'll free your friend and give you my rarest card as well as my Locator Card. If you lose, however, you'll have to hand over Yubel and I'll do what you did to me all these years ago!"

Syrus was surprised. _I don't get it,_ he thought. _Is this what the guy meant as an act of revenge against the man who wronged him? If we're talking about either the Supreme King or Yubel, then he's got a right to be angry, but this is Jaden he's dueling!_ That's when he noticed the glowing eyes. _Of course! The eyes see everything! Jaden must be right! If so, then we're dealing with a liar and a thief, and I'm in the middle of it!_

"DUEL!" both the man and Jaden yelled.

(Osamu?: 4000.)

(Jaden: 4000.)

"First thing's first," Jaden yelled. "I place a card face-down in DEF mode and throw down a couple more for good measure. Your move."

The man smirked. "You want proof that I'm the real Osamu? Well, step right up. I also throw down a face-down, and I play Master Kyonshee in ATK mode!"

Without warning, a monster with a tag on his face appears on the field.

Master Kyonshee:

ATK: 1750.

DEF: 1000.

"Now, Master Kyonshee, attack Jaden's face-down! Zombie High Kick!" Kyonshee then attacks Jaden's face-down…and destroys it.

"That was my Dandylion you just destroyed," Jaden yelled, "and now, I get to summon two Fluff Tokens!" With that, the tokens appeared in place. "Although I can't use them yet, they're safe-guarding my Life Points."

"Don't think you'll get off THAT easily, Jaden," Osamu said. "By my next turn, I'll be sure to give you to the man who gave me this chance."

"I've dueled him already, thank you. My move!" Jaden then drew his next card. _Oh boy. Yubel, if I remember correctly, this guy's out for your blood. I'll just have to put you on reserve for the time being._ "Before I make my move, I sacrifice both my Dandylion Tokens in order to summon Elemental Hero Bladedge!" In place of the two tokens, a gold man took his place.

"I was expecting your little bitch to come out and play," the man said. "Not some gold man."

"You'd be surprised how much I changed, you faker! Which reminds me, Bladedge, attack his Kyonshee! Blade Hammer!" As soon as Bladedge destroyed Kyonshee…

"You've activated my Trap Card, Jaden!" he yelled. "Red Ghost Moon! This trap lets me take amount of Life Points equal to the amount of ATK points your Monster has!"

(Osamu?: 6600.)

"I know what the Card does," Jaden said. "I've faced it before. And that means my turn's over."

"Right." The fake Osamu drew HIS card. "I play Decayed Commander, in ATK mode!"

Jaden was surprised at that. "Are you serious? Not even the REAL Osamu would know how to make a rookie mistake like THAT!"

"Actually, my Decayed Commander has a special ability that makes up for his setback." Jaden was surprised. "Meet the Zombie Tiger, the Decayed Commander's steed!" True to his word, an armored tiger appeared and the Decayed Commander had jumped on it. "Due to the Special Ability of my Tiger, my Commander gains 500 ATK points."

Decayed Commander:

ATK: 1500.

DEF: 1500.

"That's still weaker than Bladedge!" Syrus yelled.

"I don't think it's just the Tiger that's involved," Jaden said, horrified.

The fake Osamu laughed. "Looks like you aren't as stupid as you look," he said. "From my hand, I bring in my Everliving Underworld Cannon!" From the Spell Zone, a giant cannon made from the bones of many enemies had appeared. "With this card, any Zombie monster that's Special-Summoned on my side of the field makes this cannon take out your Life Points by 800, but I can only do this once per turn, so consider yourself lucky that I'm going slow on my revenge. And considering that my Zombie Tiger was a Special Summon, well…"

At the fake Osamu's laugh, the Cannon had fired onto Jaden.

(Jaden: 3200.)

After the assault, the platform had charged up for electricity and shocked the young duelist.

"What the hell was that?" Jaden asked him.

"Oh, I forgot to mention that these platforms are giant conductors similar to that of the Underground Duels' own, so when your life points go to 0, your life ends."

_Just great,_ Jaden thought. _I'm getting close to exposing this guy's identity, but if I lose this duel, it's all over!_

"Make your move, Jaden Yuki, for it will be your last."

To be continued…

----

(A/n: Why bring out Osamu? Well, as you can guess, it's not the REAL Osamu he's up against. If anything, I'm bringing out some of Yugi's older opponents as well as the Dark Signers from 5D's involved in this mess. The guy Jaden's facing happens to be one of Yugi's older opponents, but I made his deck more original than using Osamu's clown monsters...)


	9. Face the Bane of Death

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 9: Jaden vs Osamu!?! The Imitator of Death…wait, WHAT!?!

----

Field so far:

Osamu's side:

Decayed Commander:

ATK: 1500.

DEF: 1500.

Zombie Tiger (equipped):

ATK: 1400.

DEF: 1600.

Everliving Underworld Cannon (Continuous Spell).

Jaden's Side:

Elemental Hero Bladedge:

ATK: 2600.

DEF: 2300.

Two face-down cards.

Osamu?: 6600.

Jaden: 3200.

----

"I'm at the area," a man said from the building. "You were right, Kaiba. Something's definitely up."

"What's going on, Devlin?" Kaiba asked through the com-link.

"We've got an Underground Duel present, and it looks like someone's using undead monsters against Jaden Yuki."

"By any chance is it a man in a cloak?"

"Definitely, and it looks like there's a kid in a hostage situation. Jaden's friend?"

Kaiba was silent at that. "That explains why he was off the grid," he said. "I'm calling his older brother. From what I can tell, we're dealing with more than just the Shadows of Necro."

"Does that explain the cuffs?"

"Most likely. I didn't allow the Underground Rules to be involved in this tournament, but it looks like Jaden's got this taken care of."

"Right. I'll try to make sure the hostage is safe. You'd do the same if it was Mokuba."

"Just make sure you remain unseen, Devlin. If I'm right, we're dealing with the guy who impersonated me in Duelist Kingdom."

Duke nodded as he walked behind the faker. _It's all you, Yuki._

During the duel, Jaden drew his card. "Why didn't you place a face-down? Don't tell me that you plan to attack with the Tiger and Commander alone, do you?"

"Do you take me for a fool? The Cannon is used in order to make sure that you suffer a painful death!"

"If that's the case, then you're dumber than I am." The fake Osamu was surprised. "I equip Armor Breaker to Bladedge, and I'll have him attack your Commander."

With that, Bladedge and the Breaker had attacked Osamu's Commander/Tiger combo…

"Fat chance, Yuki," the fake Osamu said. "Because of the effect of my Zombie Tiger, I can put him in place of my Commander!"

…and the Tiger took the hit, destroying itself.

"Well, at least I get to use both my Breaker and Bladedge's effects. Because your Tiger's DEF was lower than Bladedge's Attack points, you lose the points you gained."

(Osamu?: 4000.)

"As for my Breaker, I can make him destroy any card on the field when successfully attacked, and I chose your Cannon!"

With that, the cannon was destroyed in an instant.

"That was a rookie mistake, and I end my turn. It's your move, impostor."

"That was only a minor setback, Jaden," the fake Osamu said, flinching. "I summon Nightmare Horse, in ATK mode!" A spectral horse can be seen next to the Commander. "Now I use one of your favorite cards, Polymerization, to fuse this with the Spirit Reaper in my hand in order to form the Reaper on the Nightmare!"

Jaden wasn't exactly surprised. He knew that there were other Fusions out there, but he didn't expect a monster that could directly attack him to fuse with a Reaper card.

Reaper on the Nightmare:

ATK: 800.

DEF: 600.

"Now, this monster can't be destroyed in battle, just like Yubel. However, he CAN directly attack your life points."

"Why am I not surprised?" Jaden asked himself. "Just make your attack already!"

"As you wish, Jaden Yuki! My reaper, Attack! Faint Scythe Slash!" With that, the Reaper's scythe had directly attacked Jaden.

(Jaden: 2400.)

"Oh, and when my Reaper attacks you directly, you have to discard one of the cards in your hand."

_As if that wasn't painful enough,_ Jaden thought. Discarding a card, he then sighed. _I hope this works._

"Activate Trap Card!" Jaden yelled. "Damage Interest! When you attack me directly, this card's effect DOUBLES the effect your Reaper's Direct Attack, only on YOU!"

"WHAT!!!" the fake Osamu yelled. Before anyone could respond, the Scythe had attacked him, and the man went in pain.

(Osamu?: 2400.)

Watching from the sidelines, Devlin noticed the look in Jaden's eyes. _I can't believe I'm thinking this,_ he thought, _but Kaiba might be right about this guy. From what I can see, he's been expecting these attacks for a while, but I need to focus on remaining unseen._

"Not bad, Yuki," the fake Osamu said. "I end my turn by placing a spell face-down. Your move."

Jaden drew his card. _Perfect,_ he thought. _I'll have to make the next move count._ "Because of the effect of the Necroshade I discarded, I get to summon one Elemental Hero without tributing any monsters."

The fake Osamu was surprised. "You cheater!" he yelled. "You planned this all along!"

"That's rich," a new voice said, "coming from a guy who stole Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragons during Duelist Kingdom. Then again, subtlety isn't your strong point, is it, Death Imitator?"

The fake Osamu laughed, revealing his true form. "I don't know who you are, but you managed to figure out my true identity. Regardless, you won't be able to defeat me in this duel."

"For the record," Jaden said, "I knew that you weren't Osamu, but a frigging Death Imitator? That's just low. By the way, thanks for helping me out, Duke."

The Death Imitator, with a confused look, had taken a look at the cage and was shocked by the lack of hostage. "You little son of a bitch! I nearly had you both pinned!"

"That's what you get for messing with us," Duke said, untying Syrus. "Jaden, finish your move!"

"With pleasure," Jaden said. "Now, where was I? Oh yeah. The Elemental Hero I summoned using Necroshade's ability. Come forth, Elemental Hero Neos!"

Onto the field, an alien humanoid had appeared right next to Bladedge and the Armor Breaker.

"Activate Trap Card! Judgement of the Underworld Ruler! Since Neos has appeared through a special effect, I can destroy him with this card!"

"Not so fast, Imitator!" Jaden yelled. "Activate Trap! Elemental Mirage!"

The Death Imitator was shocked. "Elemental What?!?"

"You heard me. Since you destroyed Neos, I activate this Trap Card, bringing back him and getting Necroshade along for the ride." After Neos was destroyed, both he and Necroshade had appeared onto the field. "And since both of them were Special Summoned, I still can do a Normal Summon. I sacrifice both Bladedge and Armor Breaker in order to bring forth my trusted ally and friend, Yubel!"

From the remains of both the gold hero and the cannon attached to it came a monster that looked female…yet wasn't at the same time, appear between Neos and Necroshade.

"Is this a private party or can anyone join?" she asked them.

"From what I can see," Neos said, "he probably wasn't preparing for your arrival."

"And I was interrupted from my usual game with the Reaper of Cards for THIS!?!" Necroshade asked them. "Looks like we're up against a Gay Clown of some sort. Heck, even gayer than that Crowler character."

"Save the chit-chat for later, guys," Jaden said. "It's still my turn. And for the record, I've still got a few cards in my hand that can help. Neos, Yubel, are you guys ready?"

Yubel nodded. "Go for it, Judai-kun."

"It's all yours, Jaden," Neos said.

"I now play Super Polymerization, making Neos and Yubel fuse into the all-powerful Neos Wizeman!"

With that, both monsters had turned into a combination of the two.

Neos Wizeman:

ATK: 3000.

DEF: 3000.

"Unbelievable!" Duke yelled. "It's just…unbelievable!"

"I remember this card," Syrus said. "It's what Jaden used to save Duel Academy."

"And it's one that represents my bond with Yubel," Jaden said. "With my friends and monsters on my side, I can take on ANYTHING that crosses my path!"

The Death Imitator was scared out of his wits. "You can't be serious! You can't attack during the same turn you fused it!"

"No, but Necroshade can. Necroshade, do your thing! Attack his Decayed Commander! Wrath of the Reaper!"

Necroshade attacked the Commander with all his might.

(DI: 1800.)

"And I'll throw down a face-down, ending my turn," Jaden said. "Your move, Imitator."

"And make it quick," Necroshade added, "because the Reaper of Cards and I have a game of poker in a couple minutes."

"Wait," Syrus said. "Necroshade can talk?"

Duke, however, was wary of the Imitator. _Something's not right, _he thought. _This guy's acting like he's not even TRYING to counter his strategies._

"I play De-Fuse in order to split my Reaper of the Nightmare into its Material Monster forms," the Imitator said.

Reaper of the Nightmare turned into Spirit Reaper and Nightmare Horse.

Jaden narrowed his eyes. "What's your game, Imitator?" he asked him.

"No game, boy. Just a bit of an insurance policy so I can summon a monster. One that your other self is familiar with." Jaden flinched in horror. "I sacrifice them both in order to summon the God of Darkness!"

Both monsters were tributed in order to form a giant eye, making Jaden cringe in fear and Syrus pale.

"That's the monster that made Haou rise," Syrus said.

Duke growled. "That's why Kaiba sent me here in the first place," he said. "He knew that something was off."

"I've defeated this thing before," Jaden said, eyes glowing brighter. "I can do it again!"

"Good luck, because I'm attacking Necroshade first. My God, Destroy his Necroshade! Piercing Glare!" The eye then managed to destroy the monster. "Oh, and when my God destroys one of your monsters, you lose 700 Life Points."

(Jaden: 1700.)

Jaden got quite a bit of shock from THAT one.

"I now place one card face-down and end my turn."

Jaden drew HIS card. _I need to get rid of his God before I lose everything!_ "I play Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two more cards." _These will work just nicely._ "I now play the Spell Card Burial From the Different Dimension, which lets me bring back up to 3 monsters removed from play and put them back in the Graveyard." _That means Yubel and Neos are back. However, this next one will be quite the surprise for him._

"What good will that do?" the Imitator asked him. "You're only delaying the inevitable between you and me."

"That's because I've just received this card from Pegasus himself, Imitator, and it's about time this guy got a test run!" The gay clown was surprised. "Activate Face-Down, Return of the King! With this card, I can remove either Neos or Yubel from the Graveyard in order to summon the King himself!"

"There's a King Monster?" Syrus asked himself.

"I don't know," Devlin said. "I'm only looking at this duel as a mediator, not a player."

"What are you talking about?" the Imitator yelled.

Jaden smirked. "Meet Elemental Hero Silver King! The representation of the next King of Games!"

From a nearby building, Atem could sense the power of Jaden's next monster.

_Looks like he's activated one of the King Cards,_ he thought. _And from what I can see, it's the one that's made through Mahado's Spatial Counterpart. It would be interesting to see the Supreme King Armor, but I'm actually wondering how he would fare in a duel between myself and the God Cards now._

From the ashes of the urn, a burst of silver armor blinded those who were watching…and a man in a brighter version of the Supreme King's Armor (sans the mask) had appeared next to Neos Wizeman.

Elemental Hero Silver King:

ATK: 2800.

DEF: 2400.

"It can't be!" the Imitator yelled. "The Supreme King? In Card Form?"

"Oh it is," Jaden said, eyes glowing. "And he's very angry with you cheating Death. Heck, compared to Kaiba's wrath, his own is substandard, but it is fearsome anyways. And his special ability sterns from other Elemental Heroes, Yubel, and Neos Wizeman himself."

"That's right," the Silver King said. "With the wiles of Necroshade, the strength of Bladedge, the power of Yubel, and the knowledge of the Wizeman here, my strength increases with their help!"

Elemental Hero Silver King:

ATK: 4000.

DEF: 3600.

"But my monster can't be destroyed in battle!" the Imitator yelled.

"No, but his ATK points are numbered. Wizeman, do your magic!"

"For Neos Space!" Neos Wizeman yelled, attacking the God of Darkness.

"Because of Neos Wizeman's special ability," Jaden said, "My monster can't be destroyed, but it CAN do two things! One, drain your Life Points by the amount of ATK points your Dark God has, and two, give me the amount of Life Points matching that of your God's DEF points, but I'm sticking with the DEF points."

(Jaden: 2700.)

"And since the King was a Ritual Summon, I get to do a Normal Summon, so I play Winged Kuriboh! In DEF mode!"

The Kuriboh came out…and was surprised at the God of Darkness.

"Don't worry, my friend," Neos Wiseman said. "You're instrumental in this next part of Jaden's strategy."

Kuriboh was relieved.

"I now play the Spell Card 'Rainbow Road' in order to make my Winged Kuriboh make a path to your Life Points."

Devlin recognized that card. "Isn't that the card Yugi used against one of the Big Five?" he asked himself.

"More like Atem used it," Jaden said, surprising Duke, "and I'm showing him what the power of the King can do! Let's go, Silver King! Attack the Faker's Life Points directly!"

"No!" the Death Imitator yelled. "You little son of a bitch!"

With that said, the King had pierced through the Death Imitator, making his life points go straight to Zero and the Death Imitator shocked beyond belief…in more ways than one.

"I can't believe that I lost to the Supreme King," the Imitator said.

"That's because you've used my friend's deck without his intent," Jaden said. "Now, since you lost the duel, by Battle City rules, you must hand over your rarest card and the Locator meant for Osamu."

"Don't think this is over, Jaden Yuki!" the Imitator said. "I still have one trick up my sleeve!" However, he realized that the remote control he had up his sleeve was missing. "What? Who took my device!?!"

"That would be me," someone said.

There were mixed reactions to the new arrival: Jaden's was a smirk, Syrus was surprised, Duke was in disbelief, and the Death Imitator was scared beyond all comprehension.

"Yugi Muto?" Syrus asked himself.

"That's not Yugi," Duke said. "That's the Pharaoh!"

"All right, Atem!" Jaden yelled. "Nice going with the swipe!"

Atem smirked. "I learned a lot from this time period, Jaden. Now, I believe you know the consequences of not abiding by the rules, Devlin?"

"Oh right," Duke said. He then turned to the Death Imitator and said, "For not giving the winner your half of the bargain, you're going to face an Eliminator in order to regain the right to duel in the Tournament."

"Don't bother," a mysterious voice said. "This guy's not paying attention to you guys."

Everyone was surprised by the new appearance.

"That has to be the most ridiculous costume ever created," Syrus said.

The man was growling underneath his mask. "It was last minute," he replied. "Now, I believe that someone would like to talk to the victor of this duel."

"You guessed right, you bloody wild card," another man said from the lifeless Death Imitator's body. "And he's pretty angry for this man to actually lure my target using his best friend as bait."

"Nightshroud!" Jaden yelled.

"THAT'S Nightshroud?" Duke asked them.

"Only through the puppet. And since you were late, Pharaoh, he paid the price for going after the Supreme King when he's MY target!"

"Of course," Atem said. "Then again, he DID steal a deck from a Duelist that Jaden knew from his youth."

"No matter. I'm pretty sure Tragoedia would like to know that his heart lives on."

Jaden recognized the name immediately. "Tell Tragoedia that he won't be getting my friend even if you pry him from my cold, dead body! I still want to duel him for what he did to my mentor!"

"Suit yourself, Supreme King. However, I believe you have a card that my friend intended to use against the Pharaoh here. As for Tragoedia, well, you'll meet him soon enough!" After a maniacal laugh, the Death Imitator was a lifeless husk.

"Nightshroud's back?!?" Syrus asked them.

Jaden nodded. "And he's brought the Criminal out of prison," he said. "Damn him!"

"I can understand who Nightshroud is," Duke said, "but who's Tragoedia?"

"A Duel Monster worse than Yubel, judging by the angry look on Jaden's face," Atem said.

"Yubel only made Osamu fall into a coma," Jaden said. "Tragoedia actually KILLED my mentor after he and I had one last duel together. I still have the Nature Cards, but I think I may have to use them this time."

"Wait," Duke said, turning to Avatar. "Who are you?"

"Just someone who's going to be in the finals," Avatar said. "Strengthen your deck, Jaden Yuki. I'll be waiting, and we'll see who's the real hero between the two of us."

Jaden nodded. "But first, who are you?"

"That…is a secret. In the meantime, keep your decks close to you." With that, the Avatar left in a fashion matching Tuxedo Mask's.

That's when the young Slifer duelist recognized the masked man. _Is that…no way. That explains the Haou energy I sensed from him earlier, but it looks like we're not just dealing with Dragons._

"All right," Duke said. "I want explanations. I know about the Shadows of Necro, but how is it possible for the Pharaoh to return and this guy to take the form of another Duelist. And no funny business or else I'm disqualifying you both."

Atem and Jaden gulped.

"Well, it's kind of a long story," Jaden said…

A few minutes later…

"That's one hell of a story," Duke said. "Well, to tell you the truth, the real Osamu is alive, just not a part of the current tournament."

Jaden breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I thought my past would haunt me again."

"As for the Pharaoh…well, I'm accepting the alias 'Gintaro Daimon,' but your cards look like you copied them from Yugi's deck."

Atem shook his head. "This is the one from Duelist Kingdom with some personalized cards that match that of my Egyptian Past. The Dark Magicians I possess are part of the past. I also have the God Cards and their fused form in reserve until the finals, so technically, I'm not breaking any rules."

"Anything else?"

"Well, I can tell you this: Yugi's using his OWN deck, and I'm talking about the one with the Silent Swordsmen/Magicians and Gandora."

Jaden recognized that name immediately. "That's the Dragon of Destruction. It's basically what's known as a nightmare to Continuous Card Users and is said to counteract the Destiny Board!"

Syrus flinched. "If it's that powerful, then why didn't he use it in Duelist Kingdom?"

"Because had his Grandfather not been kidnapped, he wouldn't have had his deck at hand."

"So the deck Yugi had at the time was his Grandfather's Deck, then," Jaden said. "Suddenly, I'm looking forward to our rematch."

Atem nodded. "There's still the Battle City Elimination Finals to watch out for, and I'm planning to make myself known at that point. In the meantime, keep yourself fresh for the next duel. I'll be waiting." Atem then left the area himself in order to look for good Duelists.

"Wait," Syrus said, "how did he know about Yugi's duels in the first place?"

Duke and Jaden flinched at that question.

"Well," Duke said, "it's hard to explain…"

Jaden chuckled. "You know how I fused with Yubel after our duel?" he asked the young Cyber Duelist.

"Yeah," he replied. "Why, is he a Duel Monster spirit looking for revenge?'

_If he was, he wouldn't be as helpful,_ Jaden thought. "No, just someone who's close to Yugi in terms of brotherhood, like you and Zane, only closer."

"Oh, so he's Yugi's twin."

Duke scoffed. _Yeah, you could say that._ "That's a way of saying, but back to the matter at hand. Since your opponent is unconscious, you're free to take all his Locator Cards and his Rarest Card."

"Oh right," Jaden said. He then searched the deck for any good cards. _Geez, there's nothing that can help my Heroes, and even WITH the new additions, I doubt that I can actually USE zombies and fiends._ He then stopped in shock. _Wait a minute. What the heck is this?_ "Uh, what's this?"

Duke and Syrus looked at the card in question and were shocked.

"That's an Evil Hero!" Syrus yelled.

Jaden flinched. "Say WHAT!"

Duke was surprised as well. "I didn't even know Pegasus MADE these cards!" he yelled. "And it looks like he's a darker version of your Neos card."

----

OC Card Data:

Evil Hero Schwartz Galaxi.

Attribute: Dark.

Level: 7.

Type: Fiend/Effect.

Effect: This card can only be Special Summoned through the effects of "Corruption of Neos." This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card is treated like "Elemental Hero Neos" in terms of effect and attribute.

ATK: 2500.

DEF: 2000.

----

"How could Nightshroud do this to him?" Jaden asked himself.

"Schwartz Galaxi?" Syrus asked them. "I understand Galaxi, but what does Schwartz mean in German?"

"Black, actually," Duke said. "Apparently, someone wanted him to play an Unlisted Spell in order to bring a darker version of your Neos card."

"And I just found it," Jaden said, looking through another card.

----

OC Card Data:

Corruption of Neos.

Type: Quick-Play Spell Card.

Effect: When this card is played with any number of "Elemental Hero Neos" cards in the Graveyard, Special Summon any number of "Evil Hero Schwartz Galaxi" Monster Cards that match the amount of "Elemental Hero Neos" cards in the Graveyard.

----

"I'm going to need these cards in order to defeat Nightshroud," Jaden said, solemnly. "And if it's possible, I'm getting Tragoedia before anyone else falls because of him."

"I won't try to stop you," Duke said, "but I AM going to inform Kaiba of this development. If anything, I'll just say you gained a Locator Card and left the body for me to take care of. In the meantime, congratulations on your first Battle City victory."

Jaden nodded. "Sorry if we can't catch up, Sy, but destiny awaits!"

Syrus smirked. "Good luck, Jaden!"

With a Locator Card gained and a dark discovery found, Jaden's one step closer to the Battle City Elimination Round. But who is Tragoedia, and what is his connection to the Winged Kuriboh? What cards does Atem have in his deck? And who…wait, that question may already be answered. Either way, find out what happens next in this tournament, otherwise, history will repeat itself and find itself in tragedy…again.

To be continued…

----

(A/n: Yes, Tragoedia's from the GX Manga. He's basically the criminal opposite of Winged Kuriboh and the monster who actually killed someone close to Jaden looking for him. No, Koyo's not related to Ryoga. The last name is a coincidence alone.

And I wasn't aware of the real card name of 'Rainbow Road,' but considering that Yugi had used it with Kuriboh, I was thinking Jaden could do the same thing with Winged Kuriboh, so it's an Anime/OC Card Hybrid that's listed as follows:

Rainbow Road

Type: Quick-Play Spell Card.

Appearance: A Rainbow path leading to Heaven's pearly gates.

Effect: To activate this card, tribute 1 "Kuriboh," "Winged Kuriboh," or "Kuribon" in order to attack your opponent's Life Points directly, regardless of whether the opponent has any monsters on the field. At the End Phase of your turn, this card is sent to the graveyard.

I added Kuribon because of the 5D's factor. If anything, Yugi, Atem, Jaden, and Luna have this card in their decks.

Other than that, there's no inclusion of any Ranma characters. Remember the role I gave Happosai? Well...what would happen if a 300-year-old Martial Arts master met a 5000-year-old Pharaoh in a duel?

If anyone can suggest a deck for Happosai (other than a Warrior Deck, because Ranma already has it covered), make sure it matches his personality. Energy Drain would be suitable because of his method of gaining KI, and he's BOUND to have at least 1 woman in his deck to suit his perverted needs.

I also have the idea of Ranma's first opponent in this, and it's Koizumi possessed by Jinzo wanting revenge against Jaden. However, should Jinzo's deck be upgraded with other deck-crippling cards (like the Crush Card Virus, Deck Destruction Virus, Imperial Order, etc.) and monsters that are thought weak but aren't?

Kyon's opponent, however, happens to be the Computer Club President (aka, Carl, as I'm calling him), and he's got cards made from Konami Video Games involved (Gradius, Victory Viper, Yae, the B.E.S series, etc).

Also, the OC's really a bit of a SI, but don't be fooled. He'll only go as far as face Jaden in the Elimination Round, and he'll use cards that were made from HIS contribution to Pegasus's fund to take out the Light of Destruction. The lists can be seen on my DA Account.

Until next time, Read and Review. I doubt I can answer them until Yahoo fixes the E-Mail problem, but I'll do what I can. In the meantime, start reading other fiction in the process, and I don't mean my own.)


	10. Anything Goes Dueling

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 10: Atem vs Happosai. The Older the Duelist, the Less Senile the Player.

(A/n: I know I'm going to be chastised for this development, but it was for the humor and fan service factor. That, and this is technically the reason why I didn't choose Happosai as the opposing duelist from Nerima. Or Kuno, for that matter.)

----

_Whoever this Nightshroud character is,_ Atem thought while walking the streets, _he seems to be taking the forgotten souls of the duelists Yugi and I have faced over the years. However, this Avatar guy seems intent on stopping him. But who is he?_

Yes, the Pharaoh himself, under the alias of Gintaro Daimon in Battle City V2, had been asking himself this since he saw Jaden's duel against the Death Imitator. Although he had seen Jaden's cards before, he thought the supposed successor was going to draw one of the Sacred Beasts.

_I'll just have to keep my deck close to me at all costs, otherwise I might fall victim to something the Rare Hunters and the Tomb Robber would pull off._

"SWEETO!" an old man's voice yelled.

The Pharaoh's thoughts were sent to an abrupt halt when THAT cry was yelled. "What was that?" he asked himself.

"What a haul! What a haul!"

Taking a good look, he was surprised to see an old midget…well, older than Yugi's Grandfather, at least…running away from a horde of angry women…with a bag on his shoulders…running faster than light…and heading straight towards him!!!

Many thoughts ran through the Pharaoh's head, one of them being "Run for the Hills," but from what he could see, that man had to be stopped.

That is, if he can live through the encounter first.

_Even in this era,_ he thought, _there are thieves present._ With quick thinking, he had intercepted the old man, making the bag fall and reveal…bras and panties?

"What's the big idea, Sonny?" the old man asked the duelist. "Depriving an old man of his pretties. You should respect your elders, boy!"

_Oh, please, _Atem thought. _I'm older than HE is._ "All I see is a senile old goat that's turned into a criminal with a perversion similar to that of Gollum's from Lord of the Rings." Yeah, before meeting Jaden, he took an interest in ficticious works, one of them being the Lord of the Rings series.

"And you're not any better? Men like you should revel in the glory of the joys the opposite sex contains!"

Atem narrowed his eyes. Instead of retorting, he just did a drop-kick on him, making the old hermit go into the sky.

"I'M BLASTING OFF AGAIN!!!" he yelled…

"You got off easy!" Atem replied. _Had he continued, I would have given him a Mind Crush._

"The old freak never learns," he heard a familiar voice reply.

Atem, recognizing the voice, asked, "You know that guy, Ranma?"

Yup. The Pigtailed Martial Artist was about to intervene had Atem not done the job already.

"All too well. The old guy's about as annoying as Kuno, but has the skills to back his strength up. In fact, he's the Grandmaster of the Martial Arts style I use."

"Looked more like an old guy who's abusing his seniority."

Ranma snickered at Atem. "That's Happosai, all right. Don't be fooled by his age, though. He drains the KI from females through groping, and you just stopped him from taking his power source."

Atem was surprised. "Okay, I've faced off against a giant dark being, but never in my years had I heard of something like THAT."

"Well, if it's any consolation, I think he'll want revenge on you." Atem just glanced at Ranma in disbelief. "Did you see his arm?"

Through a long thought process, he then remembered something off…and grimaced. "Oh boy. Looks like I found my first opponent."

"I'll keep watch if the guy does anything crooked. If anything, I think he just opened a Dueling Branch involving the Anything Goes style."

Up on the building, the Avatar, had anyone seen through his mask, was pitying the Pharaoh.

"Huh," he said. "I was hoping my next match involved Ranma, but it looks like I'll be watching the Pharaoh." He then looked at his watch. "And knowing a guy like that, he'll show up sooner. If anything, he'll be disqualified for staying outside the city limits."

"HALT, FOUL BANDIT!" Avatar heard from behind him. "WHATEVER BUSINESS YOU HAVE WITH FOUL SORCERER SAOTOME WILL BE DEALT WITH ME, TATEWAKI KUNO, THE BLUE THUNDER OF FURINKAN HIGH!" Thunder had struck behind him.

Under his mask, the Avatar was surprised. "Normally, I'd ask who you were, where you came from, or how you got the thunder to strike after the cheesy speech," he said, "but you've already explained the first two and I've seen a bit of chaos in my time. What bugs me is how you got qualified without the men in white coats seeing you."

"That is irrelevant," Kuno replied. "What matters is that you get out of the way of my wrath on Saotome and release his grip on Fierce Tigress Akane and the Treeborne Kettle Girl."

_This guy's playing hardball._ "I'll move on one condition: You'll have to face me in a card game."

Kuno was angered, but he complied. "You have some nerve facing me in a card game, for if you must know, I am the best in Nerima."

_Now I know that's a lot of bull._ The masked man shook his head. "Put your money where your mouth is, or better yet, your Locator Card as well as your Rarest Card."

"CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!"

Ranma felt a weird chill go through the air.

"Something wrong?" Atem asked him.

"I have a feeling that someone I know back in Nerima is getting their ass handed to them on a silver platter," he replied to the Pharaoh. "And I know they've just entered to face me in a match."

"YOU!" they heard behind them. When both Atem and Ranma turned around, they saw Happosai battered, bruised, and pissed off beyond belief. "You stole an old man's pretties, and now you must pay!"

"Oh, lighten up, ya old pervert!" Ranma yelled. "Besides, he let you off easy."

Happosai recognized Ranma and grinned. "I'll deal with you later, Ranma, m'boy. Right now, I've got a whipper-snapper to discipline."

Ranma growled. "You want me to take this guy and kick his ass?" he asked the Pharaoh.

"Wait," Atem said. "Let me handle this."

"But this guy knows pressure points better than I do. He's around 300 years old, give or take a few years…"

"I'm older than he is. Besides, there are people watching."

"Oh." Ranma then smirked. "Well in any case, make sure to get in a few direct attacks from righteous womanly fury."

Atem smirked. He then turned to Happosai and said, "I accept your challenge, Happosai. But considering that this is a tournament involving Duelists, you'll have to play by THEIR rules."

"I'm well aware of THAT. In fact, after getting out of the cave my two wayward students trapped me in, I've been studying the art of Dueling and incorporated it into my own style!"

Ranma groaned. _I knew it._

"Did I miss anything important?" he heard an unfamiliar voice say.

Ranma turned to see a masked man in a cloak…carrying Kuno with a Duel Disk? "How the hell did you knock out Kuno?" he asked him. "As a matter of fact, who are you?"

"My name is of no importance," the Avatar replied. "As for Kuno, even though his physique is more or less full of recovery, I had to duel him in order to shut up. The guy fell in one turn."

"Wow," he said, impressed. "I saw someone use a watermelon to knock him out, but draining his brain sounds smarter."

"Well, I had a little help restraining him, but I want to see how a skilled duelist fares against a skilled Martial Artist who incorporates his fighting spirit into a duel."

With that said, both Atem and Happosai had activated their Duel Disks.

"LET'S DUEL/FIGHT!" they both yelled in tandem.

(Atem: 4000.)

(Happosai: 4000.)

----

From another point, a man in a business suit can be seen with Seto Kaiba and Setsuna Meiou watching the next duel.

"You're kidding, right?" he said.

Kaiba noticed the disbelief in the man's voice. "I know it's hard to comprehend, Mr. Goodshow," he said, "but it's true. This guy's skill level is enough to qualify, but from what I see, Gintaro, if that is his real name, is better."

"That's not it," the man, known as Mr. Goodshow, replied. "I'm just wondering if the Avatar is one to be trusted."

"I'm starting to question that as well," Setsuna said. "So far, I'm the only one able to qualify for the Finals, but it seems like this man is recruiting."

"It's a back-up plan in case neither the Signers nor the Senshi can be able to face off against the combined threat," Kaiba explained. "I'm not exactly a believer of this, but after watching the duel between the man who stole my Blue-Eyes White Dragons and the only Slifer of his graduating class, my hunch was correct. Someone's pulling what the Rare Hunters did ten years ago, and they've got more agents in there."

"But you remember what happened to Domino," Setsuna interjected. "It split into Neo Domino city and Satellite after the incident involving the Earthbound Gods."

"I'm well aware of that, but I fired the man who suggested Nerima during the planning stages."

Mr. Goodshow may not have been amused, but he was interested. "What happened to Nerima?"

"I'd answer, but the duel between the Avatar and one Tatewaki Kuno ended in a one-hit kill." The other two face-faulted at that answer. "By my guess, I'd say that Kuno's skill was really non-existent, considering it was hacked earlier today. Now, let's see how this duel turns out…"

----

"Get ready to be schooled," Happosai said. "I play Queen's Knight in ATK mode!" With that, Happosai had brought out a monster that was dressed in armor. "I now place two cards face-down and end my turn. Your move, brat!"

Ranma was surprised. _Wait, Queen's Knight?_ He thought. _Don't I have that card along with King's Knight and Jack's Knight? If so, this guy's two monsters short of an Arcana Force Knight._

_Don't be fooled by his fake-out,_ Atem thought. _He could have a couple traps in store for me._ "Queen's Knight, old man? I knew you were perverted, but from what I can tell, you don't have the other two."

Happosai was surprised, yet smirked. "That's right. My deck is all-female, which means I don't have a King's Knight and a Jack's Knight."

_Okay, I knew he was a pervert, _the Avatar thought, _but aren't all-female decks used by mainly FEMALES in GENERAL?!? This guy must be the Grandfather of all perverts everywhere!_

The Avatar had no idea how right he was.

"My move," Atem said, drawing a card. "I place one Monster face-down in DEF mode." A hologram of the card appears. "And like you, I place two face-downs. My turn is over."

_At least he's smart enough not to attack, _Ranma thought. _Still, knowing Happi, he's got something to disable the Pharaoh's deck. But what he's up against is a mystery._

"Running scared?" Happosai taunted. "Well, you will be once I start my turn." The old pervert drew his card. "Queen's Knight, attack his face-down monster! **CARDINAL SLASH!**" The knight did so, destroying Atem's face-down…which turned out to be Witch of the Black Forest, much to his displeasure. "What the…"

"You just destroyed my Witch of the Black Forest," Atem said, smirking. "That lets me select one Monster with up to 1500 DEF points from my deck and show it to you." With that, he had revealed his Summoned Skull to him. "After that, I have to re-shuffle."

_Not bad, _Ranma said. _Because Summoned Skull has 1200 DEF points, when someone destroys that card, he can look for it in the deck and change the order within one turn. However, Happi's not going to be pleased that you tricked him into destroying a female._

"That was a minor setback," Happosai said. "I end my turn with setting my Queen's Knight in Defense Mode." That's when his Queen's Knight kneeled.

"My move," Atem said. "And I play Frequency Magician, in DEF mode!" With that move, to everyone's surprise, a magician that looked like a King of a part of Egypt (because of the White Crown-like helmet) appeared on the field. "And because I Normal Summoned him, I can place a Spell Counter on him, but it's the only one it can carry."

"Why bring out a weak monster like THAT onto the field?" Happosai asked him. "My Queen's Knight can rip right through that sonar illusionist!"

Frequency Magician was angry at him. Atem was just shaking his head at Happosai's lack of wit. "Looks like being trapped in the cave has clouded your judgment," he replied. Happosai just gave him a weird look. "My Frequency Magician may look like he's not much, but he's one of the few monsters that are required for this next move. With that said, I sacrifice the White Magical Hat and Apprentice Magician cards in my hand in order to turn my Frequency Magician into a monster who will shatter your dreams of perversion!"

With that, the Synchronization began its work.

_I didn't know the Pharaoh knew about the art of Synchro Summoning!_ Avatar thought. He then smirked underneath his mask. _He's definitely updated his deck. I'll look forward to dueling him sometime..._

"Here comes…my Arcanite Magician!" Atem yelled.

The new magician had a costume similar to the Mighty Mage monster seen in Dungeon Dice Monsters, only older, wiser, and looks like the Magician of Black Chaos.

Happosai just laughed at it. "And what's your Magician going to do, pull a rabbit out of his hat?"

"Not quite," Atem said. "You see, my Magician's special ability enables him to gain 1000 ATK points for every Spell Counter on the field. My Frequency Magician had one in his possession, and my Arcanite Magician spawns two others." True to the Pharaoh's word, two more Spell Counters can be seen alongside it. "Because of it, my Arcanite Magician's ATK power increases by 3000!"

Arcanite Magician:

ATK: 3400.

Now, Happosai was scared.

"But here's the kicker: My Arcanite Magician can sacrifice one Spell Token in order to destroy any Spell or Trap card on the field. But considering this monster came from my Extra Deck, I can't attack yet. Instead, I play my face-down Light of Intervention, making the both of us unable to place our cards face-down, ending my turn."

Happosai drew his card and looked at it. _There's no way this runt could ruin my strategy. I'd better show him not to mess with his elders…_ "I play Gamble Angel Bunny! In ATK mode!"

To everyone's surprise (especially Ranma's), what looked like a Playboy Bunny appeared next to Queen's Knight, much to her embarrassment.

"I think Hugh Hefner's going to sue someone," Ranma said, sighing.

"Gamble Angel Bunny?" Atem asked him. "You're planning on attacking me, aren't you?"

"More than that," Happosai said. "I activate the Spell Card 'Second Coin Toss!' With this card, even when I lose the first coin toss, I can do it again."

"Obviously, you forgot about the Spell Tokens my Arcanite Magician have right now."

"I'm well aware of them! However, you can't exactly activate them until your turn begins, so savor the victory. Now, let's begin the coin toss!" With that, Happosai took out a Yen coin. "I call…Heads!" The coin flipped into the sky, leaving everyone in suspense. When it landed on the ground…it was heads, much to Atem's displeasure. "Gamble Angel Bunny, Attack him directly!"

The Playboy Bunny monster did so, and Atem received a drop-kick while blocking it.

(Atem: 3000.)

"Whoa," Ranma said. "Tough love."

"And that wasn't even a loaded coin," the masked bystander said.

"Are you done?" Atem asked him.

"Quite," Happosai said. _But I have a good idea what you're up to. I just wonder how you're going to counter-attack._

Atem drew his card. "Thanks to the effect of the Arcanite Magician, I can use one of his Spell Tokens in order to get rid of your Second Coin Toss." Sure enough, the Arcanite Magician destroyed the Second Coin Toss. "It may drain my Magician of 1000 ATK points, but it's not everything."

Arcanite Magician:

ATK: 2400.

"Because you have two monsters on the field, Happosai, I can only assume you're going to summon a strong monster."

"Possibly," Happosai replied. "What's your point?"

"Before I explain, I activate my first Trap Card, Pitch-Black Power Stone!" The card turns face-up. "This lets me summon 3 Spell Counters on the field, but when all three are gone, so is this card. It does give my Arcanite Magician an increase in ATK points, though."

Arcanite Magician:

ATK: 5400.

"Now I summon my Magician's Valkyria, in ATK mode!" With that move, a red-haired version of the Dark Magician Girl appeared, making some of the guys blush and Happosai excited. "Control your hormones, because she's basically the only thing standing in your way against my Arcanite Magician."

"Not like you'll be using her anyways," the old man said. "Either way, it's not likely that you'll get past my defenses."

"I wouldn't tell, but I'll place a card face-down and end my turn."

Happosai drew his card. "Before we begin, you should know, had you attacked my Gamble Angel Bunny, you would have succeeded."

Atem blinked. "I thought I was the master of mind tricks," he said. "It was never a Trap, was it?"

"No, it IS a trap, just…not the kind you'd think of, though. But first, I play Gemini Elf in ATK mode!" Sure enough, twin elves appeared alongside Happosai. "Now, Gemini Elf, Attack his Magician's Valkyria! **GEMINI KICK!**" With that said, the Gemini Elves started to attack Magician's Valkyria… "And now, my Trap activates! Magician's Circle!"

Atem was surprised. "How is it that you're able to benefit the both of us?" he asked him.

"Because, you're in for a surprise. Because my Gemini Elf is attacking your Valkyria, we get to Special Summon 1 Spellcaster with an ATK of 2000 or Less onto our sides of the field."

Ranma and the Avatar were shocked.

_That means that not only does Atem have a certain card, _Ranma thought, _the old letch has something similar to it!_

"And because of the required effect," both Duelists said, "we now summon…"

_Oh boy,_ Avatar thought. _The shit's going to hit the fan with THIS one._

"…Dark Magician Girl!"

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!" Both Ranma and the Avatar yelled. For a masked man, the Avatar's not exactly typical.

Sure enough, on both sides of the field, the Dark Magician Girl appears alongside their respective masters.

_Talk about Deja-Vu, _Atem thought. _Only I'm up against a perverted old man instead of a Magician who sacrifices his cards freely. I wonder if Yugi's Grandfather was the same way. Then again, I'm pretty sure he treats those cards like he would a certain someone does...what was his name again? Heff...Heffer...Hasslehoff?_

Somewhere in America, an old man with a bathrobe sneezed.

"What do you think?" Happosai asked him. "A Magical Girl, Twins, a Fighter, and a Playboy Bunny. Quite the collection, isn't it?"

"How did you even GET some of these cards?" Atem asked him.

"I'm going with Gin on this one," Ranma said, trying to keep the alias at work. "How is it possible you managed to get cards like those in your deck?"

"To be honest," Happosai said, "I have no idea myself." Everyone in the crowd face-faulted. "Then again, I don't remember EVERY time I found a forgotten card on the side of the road."

Ranma was surprised. "Then why aren't there any males in your…wait. I forgot who I was talking to. Pardon me."

"Ranma's got a point," the Avatar said. "Every Duelist has to have a balance of both Male and Female cards, not because of preference, but for balance. For example, the Dark Magician Girl gains her power from the Dark Magician after death."

"Actually, even without Dark Magician," Atem said, "Dark Magician Girl is powerful. But this guy's theme is that of a Harem Master Deck instead of one used for strategy, so he's got quite the complex."

Happosai laughed. "You're not as dumb as you look," he said. "Yes, it's a Harem Master Deck! I just happen to be THAT perverted! Now will you please let me finish my turn?"

Atem was surprised. "If anything, because I lost life points thanks to Gemini Elf."

(Atem: 2700.)

"I end my turn," Happosai said.

_Finally,_ Atem thought. "I activate my Face-Down, Sage's Stone! Because of my Dark Magician Girl on the field, I can Special Summon my Dark Magician from my Hand or Deck." With that, the card well known to those who know of Yugi Moto appeared alongside Arcanite Magician (same design). "However, he won't make an appearance for long, because I tribute him in order to summon Dark Eradicator Warlock!"

Dark Magician then made a stunning transformation…into a warlock that's a darker version of the Dark Magician.

"But that's not all. I play Night Wing Sorceress in DEF mode in order to activate the Trap Card 'Assault Mode Activate' and Change my Arcanite Magician into Assault Mode!"

With that, a winged woman appeared, activating a card in Atem's hand. Because of that, the Arcanite Magician had changed drastically into his Assault Mode.

(A/n: For the record, Atem didn't break the rules. Night Wing Sorceress is considered his Normal Summon.)

"And since he was Special Summoned, he gains 2 Spell Counters, making the count up to seven. Do the math."

Arcanite Magician/Assault Mode:

ATK: 7900.

"Plus, since Dark Magician is in my Graveyard, both our Dark Magician Girls gain 300 ATK points."

Dark Magician Girl(s):

ATK: 2300.

"Whoa," the Avatar said. "That's raw power."

"And they're both hesitating," Ranma said, muttering.

"I know that. Why would he hesitate when Gintaro has full advantage of the situation?"

"It's either because he's waiting for the right moment to attack…or Happosai sucks."

Happosai was surprised. _No way…there's no way this upstart brat could find a way through my strategy…unless…_ That's when he realized it. "You've been holding back this entire time?"

"I don't hold back," Atem replied. "If anything, I wanted to see if you were a good duelist as you are a Martial Artist Grandmaster. Had you actually summoned monsters that can pierce through my defenses or used certain Trap Cards on my deck, you would have had the advantage."

"Then finish your turn," Happosai said. "If my hunch is correct, you already won."

"First off, I tribute two Spell Counters for my Arcanite Magician to destroy your Harem." With that, the Magician charged two Spell Counters to destroy Happosai's monsters.

Arcanite Magician/Assault Mode:

ATK: 5900.

"As my final move, I equip Dark Eradicator Warlock with the United We Stand card, increasing his ATK and DEF points by 800 for every monster on my side of the field."

Dark Eradicator Warlock:

ATK: 4900.

DEF: 4500.

"Go, Dark Eradicator Warlock! Attack his Life Points Directly! **SORROW OF THE FALLEN PRIEST!**"

If anyone could see it, they could see both Dark Magician Girl and Arcanite Magician putting both their auras into Dark Eradicator Warlock's own, who (if anyone was spiritually aware) noticed the smirking face of the original Dark Magician and the Priest who once wielded him. The blast then took Happosai off his feet, knocking him into a nearby street pole.

(Happosai: 0.)

Ranma was quite surprised. _Atem must have had some history with the Dark Magician in order to pull something like that,_ he thought. _Then again, he's got the Egyptian God Cards tucked away somewhere else, so I wouldn't expect them immediately._

The Avatar said nothing, yet walked away.

"Hang on a second," Atem said to the Avatar. "I'm aware that you managed to win your first Locator Card, but I know you're not here for the Tournament and winning Rare Cards."

Without anything mentioned, the Avatar (if anyone could see it) smirked.

"Wait a second," Ranma said. "You know what he's here for?"

"I just want to know if he's an enemy or an ally," he replied to the Martial Artist.

"Well, that's something I'd like to keep to myself until I appear in the finals," he said. "But rest assured, you and I have the same enemy." Before the Pharaoh could question him any further, Happosai woke up.

"My head," he said. "In all my years of living, I've never experienced a battle without fists like THAT before." He then took a good look at Atem and Ranma. "Looks like I owe him something. Fine. Here."

With no regret, the old man gave Atem his only Locator Card as well as two cards not seen in the duel.

Atem was surprised. "Okay, I know that's the card's no ordinary woman, but why am I given a demonic entity along with it?"

"First off, I was planning to give the Nekogal Idol to Ranma. Second, the Succubus, as she is, is looking for her other half, which was stolen from me a while ago."

Ranma face-faulted. "Thanks for the tip, old man," he said. "We feel MUCH better now."

----

OC Card List:

Nekogirl Idol Moniatha.

Attribute: Light.

Level: 6.

Type: Beast-Warrior/Effect.

Effect: This monster can be summoned without Tributes when your opponent has 2 or more monsters on his or her side of the field.

ATK: 2200.

DEF: 1200.

Gemini Succubus Riona.

Attribute: Dark.

Level: 4.

Type: Fiend/Effect.

Effect: Increase this card's ATK by 300 for every "Gemini Succubus Elena" on the field.

ATK: 1700.

DEF: 1350.

----

"Now if you'll excuse me," the old man said, "I'll be running for the hills. Ranma, train yourself in mastering the Anything Goes Duelist Style. As for my opponent, watch out for old ghosts, because they'll be out for revenge…Pharaoh."

Atem and Ranma were shocked. Before they could question him about it, the stampede of angry women returned, and Happosai ran for it.

"Well," Ranma said, snapping out of it. "I don't know about you, but I'm going to look for opponents. Good luck in your next duel, Gin."

Atem nodded, still puzzled about how Happosai knew his title.

However, on the rooftop, dark figures were watching it. One of them had a spider cloak, the other was in something similar to what a Rare Hunter wore.

"You understand your mission?" he asked the one in the spider cloak.

The young man nodded. "I was expecting Yuki, or at least Kyon, but it seems like Ranma's the fresh duelist of the four Shuffle Riders."

"You underestimate the power a Chosen possesses. Besides, the Gods revived him to counteract Zorc's revival. I am not suffering the same loss I did ten years ago."

"I don't know what the fuss about the Pharaoh is about."

The young man sighed. "I thought we already discussed this. Just go after Saotome. We'll deal with the Pharaoh later."

"As you wish, Bakura. The Shadows of Necrophades will succeed where both the Death Imitator and Genma failed to do." With that, the man had activated his powers and turned into a buzzing ball of red light.

The robed figure, only known as Bakura, shook his head. "Kiryu, I don't know why, but it seems like the angry Duel Spirit possessing the Esper seems like a bad idea."

He has no idea how right he was.

To be continued…

----

(Happosai's "Harem Master" Deck List:

Normal Monsters:

Gemini Elf; and

Queen's Knight.

Effect Monsters:

Dark Magician Girl; and

Gamble Angel Bunny.

Spell Cards:

Second Coin Toss.

Trap Cards:

Magician's Circle.

Atem's "Egyptian Era Revival" Deck List (so far):

Normal Monsters:

Cyber Commander;

Dark Magician;

Flame Manipulator;

Jack's Knight;

Masaki the Legendary Swordsman;

Red Eyes Black Dragon;

Summoned Skull; and

Queen's Knight.

Effect Monsters:

Apprentice Magician;

Arcanite Magician/Assault Mode;

Buster Blader;

Dark Eradicator Warlock;

Dark Magician Girl;

Dark Magician Knight;

Dark Magician of Chaos;

Dark Sage;

Frequency Magician;

Gemini Succubus Riona (OC Card);

King's Knight;

Kuriboh;

Magician of Faith;

Magician's Valkyria;

Maha Vailo;

Mirage Knight;

Nekogirl Idol Moniatha (OC Card);

Night Wing Sorceress;

Obnoxious Celtic Guardian;

Sorcerer of Dark Magic;

Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight;

Time Wizard;

White Magical Hat; and

Witch of the Black Forest.

Fusion Monsters:

Arcana Force Knight;

Black Skull Dragon;

Dark Flare Knight;

Dark Paladin; and

Flame Swordsman.

Ritual Monsters:

Black Luster Soldier; and

Magician of Black Chaos.

Synchro Monsters:

Arcanite Magician.

Divine Monsters:

Obelisk the Tormentor;

Slifer the Sky Dragon; and

Winged Dragon of Ra (aka, the Mega Ultra Chicken).

Spell Cards:

Black Luster Ritual;

Brain Control;

Chaos Magic Ritual;

Dark Magic Attack;

Dark Magic Curtain;

Dark Renewal;

Dedication through Light and Darkness;

Knight's Trial;

Multiply;

Magic Box;

Magical Hats;

Polymerization (x3);

Sage's Stone;

Swords of Revealing Light; and

United We Stand.

Trap Cards:

Chain Destruction;

Hallowed Life Barrier;

Light of Intervention;

Magic Cylinder;

Mind Crush;

Mind Haxxorz (no joke. That's how it's spelled);

Mind Wipe;

Pitch-Black Power Stone;

Rainbow Mirror Force;

Shift; and

Spellbinding Circle.

A/n: Uh-oh. Bakura's back, and he's either working for Nightshroud or he has his own agenda. As for the new Dark Signer, he's basically possessed by an old Duel Spirit wanting revenge. But the question is which one he's possessed by that's the problem. Here's a hint: His base effect is that all traps (or in the possessee's case, restraints) are disabled until the monster is destroyed.

As for Atem, he's basically got new cards so they can't distinguish him as his other half. Some of the cards happen to be from his life within Yugi (and some of them happen to be from his friends). The God Cards are back, too.

As for the meeting between Seto Kaiba, Mr. Goodshow (from 5D's), and Setsuna Meioh, it's clearly shown that they're planning to draw out the Shadows of Necrophades (Long name for the earlier mentioned Shadows of Necro, and has the anagram SoN) into Juuban. Explains why there's no Youma Attacks, now does it? Then again, would the situation be any safer with the tournament taking place in Nerima?

So, the status of the tournament?

Jaden, "Gintaro," and the Avatar have two Locator Cards each while "Osamu," Kuno, and Happosai are eliminated.

Jaden's Rare Card: Xenomorph Queen.

"Gintaro's" Rare Card: Manda, the Serpent Night Dragon (from Chapter 5).

The Avatar's Rare Card: White-Horned Dragon.

Oh, and Happosai's deck was made through sh*ts and giggles. Just be glad he doesn't have Yubel. Then again, would he want a result of a sex-change gone wrong?

SMACK!

OW! Oh, crap. Play some omakes!)

----

Omake 1: Wrong series!

--

Through the effects of Happosai's Trap Card, both players, much to the onlookers' surprised faces, had summoned the Dark Magician Girl.

Before either the masked Avatar or Ranma could respond, a faint giggling noise could be heard from behind them.

The source happened to have long white hair, a gray hakama with a red vest outside it, and a headband that, when one understands it, means something related to frog oil. He was basically giggling while writing down the details of the Duel Monster holograms.

"This is going to have more sales than Volume XII of Icha Icha Spirit Chronicles," he said, writing in his notebook.

"Who the hell are you?" Ranma asked the strange man.

The Avatar was surprised. "I know this guy," he muttered. "Jiraiya, what the hell are you doing in Juuban?"

"Glad you asked," he said. "I'm actually here to look for the supposed Sailor Senshi, but instead I'm looking at a duel where one side has a plethora of women and the other guy's using Magic Sages."

Happosai recognized the man. "Well, if it isn't my old peeping buddy, Jiraiya!" he yelled. "I thought you were dead!"

"Believe me," he said, "so did I. Now, can you continue what you were doing? I'm almost done with the details."

Most of the female monsters in the decks of Atem's, Ranma's, and possibly Jaden's and Kyon's were glaring at the two perverted old men.

"So," Ranma said, "you've trained under a pervert as well?"

"Not just a pervert," the Avatar said. "He's a…excuse me while I break character…SUPER PERVERT! Not to mention he's one HELL of a writer and quite the teacher in both writing and fighting."

"Uh," Atem said, "can't we get back to the duel in progress? You three are making a scene."

"Sorry about that," Ranma said, wearing a T-Shirt that says 'My Fighting Style Originated from a Pervert and all I got was this stupid T-Shirt' on it.

The Avatar (sans the cloak but still has the mask) wore a T-Shirt that said 'I trained under a Super Pervert and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt…Believe it' on it with the Believe It in orange letters.

_How the hell did they change that fast?_ Atem thought. Apparently, if one looks at his shirt closely, you'd see the words 'I killed a Gay Clown and all I got was this Ra-Forsaken T-Shirt' in Ancient Egyptian underneath the jacket.

----

Omake 2: Wrong Series…Again!

--

After both duelists summoned their Dark Magician Girls, a faint giggle could be heard.

"Take your clothes off!" they heard a nasal voice yell.

Ranma was bewildered at this man's sudden appearance, but the Avatar KNEW who this guy was. "Quagmire, how did you get here?"

"Considering the flight to Quahog is canceled due to a hurricane," he said, "I figured I could spend some free time here."

"Aren't there other flights to other cities with those things?" Ranma asked him.

"Yeah, but the flight I designate myself over goes only two ways: Straight into Japan and back out! Giggity giggity giggity goo!"

Who else but Quagmire?

_He's Quagmire! Quagmire!_

_You never really know what he's going to do next!_

_He's Quagmire! Quagmire!_

Quagmire: Giggity giggity giggity giggity, let's have sex!

----

(A/n: Read and review! Oh, and if anyone flames me, Yubel will take the brunt of them, but don't tell him/her I said that or else I get roasted.)


	11. Pinhead meets the Phoenix

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 11: Ranma vs Koizumi. The Wild Horse vs the Corrupted Psychic.

(A/n: This marks the first duel Ranma's been in. It's also his first encounter with a corrupted enemy and an evil organization as well as the second appearance of a 5D's character.)

----

_If the old man found me,_ Ranma thought as he walked down the streets of Juuban, _then it means that the others from Nerima aren't too far behind. Good thing that Avatar guy took out Kuno first, although I'm not sure if I should tell him about his equally twisted sister._

After watching the Pharaoh duel Happosai in what was more of a humorous duel than a serious one, Ranma can't help but worry about the other Nerimans following him. Especially Akane, considering she'd shoot first before dueling her opponent…if she could.

_It seems like Nabs is the only one who can actually duel, but I'm thinking she taught Happosai and he integrated it into his own style._ Ranma chuckled at that possibility. _Knowing her, he had to pay for it._

That was when a scream of terror caught his attention.

_Someone's in trouble!_

The aptly-named Wild Horse started running towards the location of the scream, HOPING someone from Nerima didn't arrive afterward.

"Ranma!" he heard a familiar voice say.

Ranma turned to see Kyon running next to him.

"Kyon, what are you doing here?" he asked him.

_Figures he'd call me Kyon, too,_ he thought. "Same reason you are, although I think someone I know is involved."

Ranma was surprised at that. "You mean the friend that went missing?"

Kyon nodded. "Apparently, Haruhi thought he was possessed by some kind of poltergeist." He then grimaced. "And I usually hate it when she makes these assumptions."

"Because they tend to be ridiculous or because it could happen?"

"Both." Ranma's surprise was that of confusion. "I'll explain later, but we have to make sure it wasn't who I thought it was."

At the location, a red-haired woman can be seen being assaulted by…the wind?

"And I thought Sayer had marked you as his favorite, Aki," the robed figure said. "But it seems you can't handle the new-found power I've gained."

"We haven't even dueled yet, bastard," The woman, known as Aki, said. "And you know assaulting the opponent is against the rules, Koizumi."

"Itsuki Koizumi doesn't exist anymore, my dear Akiza. Now, hand over your Black Rose Dragon and you'll be able to live to face another duel again."

The possessed Esper may have had his restraints unlocked, but he failed to notice the cloaked energy of a certain someone…

"**KACHU TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!**" Ranma yelled, punching Koizumi multiple times.

Never mind. Looks like Ranma can't hide his subtlety even IN the Juuban District.

Kyon just helped up Akiza get on her feet. "You okay?" he asked her.

"Mostly," she said. "By any chance are you Kyon?"

_Okay, by my guess, she's probably part of Koizumi's Organization,_ he thought. "That's what they call me."

"Ah, Kyon," the robed figure said, getting up. "I didn't expect you to show up. Then again, after I take Saotome out, I can take my frustration out on you."

Ranma took a look at Kyon, then back at the robed figure, then back to Kyon. "This is the friend that's possessed?" he asked the young human.

"That's him," he replied. "Itsuki Koizumi, although from what I can see, he's not at the wheel anymore."

"That explains how he got up easily after that surprise attack. And he's after me? I don't recall him as one of my usual rivals…"

"That doesn't matter!" Koizumi yelled. "I have orders from Master Bakura to take you out, and I needed a body to make sure my mission was successful. Imagine my surprise when I found out there were actual psychics in this tournament, but I needed to get the one who wasn't blessed by the Crimson Dragon."

"The what now?" Ranma asked him.

"The Crimson Dragon," Akiza said, "happens to be the seal that holds the Death Spider at bay. Because the Dragon couldn't handle containing the beast on its own, he split his power into five Dragon Cards, one of them being my Black Rose Dragon."

"So, you're a Signer?" Ranma asked her. She nodded. _That means she's similar to Yusei and Nabiki. Wait…Nabiki! I forgot about her Gungnir of the Ice Boundary!_ "I don't know who you are and don't care whose in control, but know this: It's a Martial Artist's duty to protect the weak from scumbags like you or Bakura, and Ranma Saotome doesn't lose."

Kyon just gave him a weird stare. _Obviously he's never gone up against a psychic before. I'm starting to wonder if what Ryoga said about Ranma was true or not._

Aki, however, had other thoughts. _Although I appreciate the bravado, this kid's out of his league. Next to me, Koizumi's considered the best Duelist in the Organization because of the very combo that made Seto Kaiba feared by all in the first place._

The being in Koizumi's body smirked. _This kid has no idea what he's up against,_ he thought. "Alright, Ranma, I accept your challenge, but I have a question: Can you stand up against a deck that can crush your own?"

"It's not a matter of strength in your deck," Ranma said, activating his V1 Duel Disk, "but the faith you have in your partner. And it's not over until the last card is played!"

The possessed Koizumi smirked and activated HIS Duel Disk.

"Either he's acting brave," Aki commented, "or he's completely stupid."

"Or both," Kyon said. "Although Ranma's got enough bravado to make Joey Wheeler proud, he isn't aware of the Crush Card Virus Koizumi is known for at school."

"Ye of little faith," they heard a voice say. Kyon and Akiza turned to see a familiar masked face next to them. "Although the guy's a skilled player, it's not the player using the deck. On the other hand, Ranma's the Underdog, and HE knows his deck inside and out. It could be anyone's duel, and the Crush Card Virus CAN be countered. You just need to find the right process."

"Are you mocking me?" Aki asked the Avatar. Apparently, she was glaring at his mask, which looks nothing like her transitions one but more suited for a poker player.

"No, I had help handcrafting this mask. Would you like yours modified, Aki-san?"

Kyon just looked at the man in a strange way. "The question I would ask is HOW Ranma would bypass the Crush Card Virus when there's other cards involved that can reduce him to using half-a-deck?"

"That's what I'm here to observe."

(Ranma: 4000.)

(Koizumi?: 4000.)

"LET'S DUEL!" they both yelled.

----

Meanwhile, in a dark area…

"How's the status on our latest minion?" Nightshroud asked Bakura.

"He's making contact with the target," he replied, "but it seems he used one of the Signers as bait to lure him as well as two other nuisances onto the playing field."

Nightshroud, if he had eyebrows, would have given a glare. "Is it another Signer?"

"Worse. It's that Avatar guy, and it seems like he's trying to stop the revival process."

"IDIOTS! I told them to not draw the Avatar's attention. Bad enough we have to worry about the Supreme King, the Pharaoh, the Signers, and the Senshi, but now HE arrives on the scene? Why is he even interested in the battle, anyways?"

"That's the question I've been asking myself after finding him watching a duel that the Pharaoh's involved in. Which reminds me, I need to take my frustration out on someone for going with the idea of possessing an Esper."

"For the record, he's in a duel right now…"

"I meant Kiryu!"

Nightshroud was surprised. "Oh, him. Well, whose idea was it to draw potential vessels from a hat?"

"Whose idea was it to MAKE that kind of system in the first place?"

The answer was given in the form of a…yeti sitting on bull holding a crane and an eel with octopus tentacles coming out of his back.

"Who wants to hear the next idea we have in store?" Taro asked them.

Nightshroud gave Bakura a blank look. "Does that answer your question, Tomb Robber?"

"I forgot that only a man from Nerima would come up with a crazy idea," he said. "You up for some fried Sasquatch?"

The being (I refuse to say the description again), now known as Pantyhose Taro, ran from the base in fear.

_You can run, Taro,_ Bakura said, _but I doubt you can hide from my wrath. Especially since you won't last long enough to see Zorc return from the Shadow Realm._

----

"Considering you're the skilled one of the two," Ranma said after drawing his hand, "I'll let you go first."

"Your loss," the poltergeist said. "I play Injection Fairy Lily in ATK mode." With that, the card turned into a nurse with a giant needle.

Ranma was surprised. _I was half-expecting the Old Letch to carry that card in his deck,_ he thought.

_Injection Fairy Lily?_ Kyon thought. _Apparently, this Avatar guy is right about one thing: Whatever's possessing Koizumi wants Ranma to go down fast, and he's got the cards needed. I just hope that Ranma can survive the cards that can cripple his deck._

"I also play two cards face-down and end my turn. Your move, Saotome, but I doubt you can stand up against my next trick."

"We've only just begun," Ranma said, drawing his card. _Okay, I know I shouldn't be hasty about this, but apparently the only reason he can summon a weak monster like that is because of a special effect it carries. Then again, there are the two Face-Downs he placed that worry me. I might as well humor him._

"I set a monster Face-Down in DEF mode," he said, "and I also play two face-down cards. Your move, but you need to think twice before you choose."

"Before I begin," the opponent said, "I activate my Face-Down Trap Cards: Solemn Wishes and Imperial Order!"

_Shit,_ Kyon thought. _He's got one of the crippling cards out already!_

"I'm well aware of Imperial Order's effect," Ranma said, "but you can only use Solemn Wishes every time you draw a card."

"I know, which is why I increase my life points by 500 after completing my Draw Phase."

(Koizumi?: 4500.)

"And I sacrifice 700 of them to activate Imperial Order's effect, which makes you unable to play Spell Cards."

(Koizumi?: 3800.)

Ranma noticed one of his face-downs sparking and turn lifeless. _Oh boy…there goes THAT idea. At least he hasn't disabled my trap._

"Now, because of my Lily's special ability," the poltergeist said, "When I sacrifice 2000 of my Life Points, my Lily can increase her ATK power to 3400!"

(Koizumi?: 1800.)

"Now, attack! **GIANT NEEDLE, PIERCE!**" As the Fairly Lily attacked the Face-Down, the surprise on the vessel's face was genuine when he saw the needle pierce a Cyclops coming out of a jar. "What? A Morphing Jar?"

"Yup," Ranma said. "Now, because of its effect, we both discard our hands and draw five cards."

"You do realize that you've just activated my Solemn Wishes' effect, right?"

(Koizumi?: 4300.)

"Yeah, but look at your monster." The vessel was in complete shock when his Fairy Lily started to smoke. "When you attacked my Morphing Jar, not only did you activate its effect, but my Trap as well! The Dimensional Prison!"

With that, a cage engulfed the Fairy Lily.

"Oh, and don't even think of playing Monster Reborn or anything like that, because she's removed from play until the game is over."

The poltergeist growled. "That was a lucky move, kid, but you're not going to survive my next attack!"

"I hate to admit it," Akiza said, "but that WAS lucky. Morphing Jar and Dimensional Prison in one move."

"Well," the Avatar said, "he isn't cheating." _That, and the Morphing Jar alludes to his ever-changing gender…_

"My move!" Ranma yelled, looking at his cards. _That Morphing Jar bought me some time, but I might need to find a way past his Imperial Order trap card._ "I play Field Commander-Rahz, in ATK mode!" A hologram of a card came up next to Ranma. "And because of his Special Ability, I can select a Warrior Monster that has four stars or less and place it on top of my deck." With that, Ranma found the right card. _I might as well summon a strong monster, but since he has the Imperial Order trap card, I need to play it safe. I think Fortress Warrior could help me out here…_ "Field Commander-Rahz, attack his life points directly! **AETHER!**" With that said, the man slashed the vessel like there was no tomorrow.

(Koizumi?: 2700.)

"I place one card face-down and end my turn. Your move, asshat."

The poltergeist drew a card. "Thanks to my Solemn Wishes card, I gain 500 Life Points from that last draw."

(Koizumi?: 3200.)

"However, I refuse to keep Imperial Order on the field, so it just goes to the Graveyard."

The face-down Ranma had turned back to normal. _Okay, something's not right._ "Why get rid of your Imperial Order?"

"Because your Morphing Jar helped the both of us." Ranma was surprised. "First off, I Set a monster in DEF position. Then, I place one card face-down, ending my turn."

Ranma drew his card. _What is he up to?_ "Rahz, attack his Face-Down!"

Kyon was in a panic. "No, it's a trap!"

But it was too late.

"I was hoping you would do that," the being said. Ranma was shocked. "Not only did you invoke the ability of my Jinzo – Returner, but you've also activated the virus!"

"Virus?!?" Ranma yelled. Sure enough, the face-down was what all Duelists feared when up against Seto Kaiba: The Infamous Crush Card.

"That's right. And all monsters over 1500 ATK points are now infected. Including your Field Commander!"

Sure enough, the Field Commander was sent to the Graveyard…as well as most of Ranma's deck.

"But this is the best part: Because the returner is destroyed, I get to Special Summon a certain monster from the Graveyard! And that would mean I don't NEED this pathetic body anymore to hide my true self!"

"What is this guy talking about?" Kyon asked the other two spectators.

"He means," the Avatar said, "that we're dealing with a monster that's known as the Trap Killer in Duel Monsters."

_That would explain the unnatural energy,_ Aki thought. _But it being an actual Duel Monster was basically the LAST thing I would have suspected._

"So, let me get this straight," Ranma said. "From what I can tell, when you had the smile on your face, you knew that you had sent yourself to the Graveyard thanks to the effect of the Morphing Jar?"

"That's right," the being said, taking physical form. "You're basically dealing with the almighty Jinzo!"

"Almighty my ass," Ranma said. "I've dealt with guys like you before, and regardless of the consequences, I was able to beat them all!"

"But you've never dueled before!" Jinzo said. "And for the record, say goodbye to your Trap Card!"

Ranma's trap was destroyed with a laser blast.

"And for the record, I know that my Special Ability neutralizes my OWN Trap Cards, but considering that your turn ended while you received the Virus, I think I'll activate the ability of my Amplifier!"

(Jinzo: 3700.)

That's when a hat suitable for Pinhead appeared on Jinzo's head.

"Because of the ability of my Amplifier, my own Trap Cards are safe for every passing turn. Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll direct-attack your Life Points. **PSYCHIC WAVE!**"

Sure enough, Ranma took damage from the attack.

(Ranma: 1600.)

"With that, I end my turn, but I doubt you can come up with a way to fight back, Ranma Saotome."

_Damn it,_ Kyon thought. _With that Amplifier out and the Crush Card activated, Ranma's basically lost powerful monsters. It looks like Koizumi's as good as gone…_

In an act that involves complete despair, no one would expect the victim laughing? Ranma was laughing?

"What's so funny?" Jinzo asked him.

Ranma just sighed. "Like I said, Ranma Saotome doesn't lose. And from what I can see, the Crush Card isn't exactly eternal."

"It's the most devastating card in all of Duel Monsters! Nothing could possibly defy the virus!"

_Wait a minute, _Kyon thought. _I forgot! Ranma's prize card!_

"It's my turn," Ranma said, drawing his card. "But first, remind me to thank you later for sending some of my powerhouses to the Graveyard, no matter how annoying they may be."

"He's gone crazy," Aki said.

"No," Kyon interjected. "He's still sane. Lucky at this, but sane none-the-less."

Aki gave him a stare that would ask if he was crazy. "What could possibly have defied the Crush Card Virus?"

"What's reborn from the ashes after death?" the Avatar asked her. "It may be his first time, but Ranma just figured out the glaring weakness a Crush Card Virus has."

"Rise from the ashes," Ranma said, "SACRED PHOENIX OF NEPHTHYS!" With a shining glow from the Graveyard, a Phoenix rose from the ashes in a similar manner of that of the Winged Dragon of Ra's. "It may be a pain in the ass, but she gets the job done flat."

"That's because you weren't exactly willing to part with the spirit just yet, Ranma," the Phoenix said, surprising those who were nearby.

"It TALKS?!?" Kyon asked him.

"Ranma fought Nephthys before?" Aki asked him.

"I prefer the name Kiima, really," she said.

The Avatar would be surprised about that, but he shook his head about the sexuality. "Well, of COURSE the Phoenix is female! Nephthys happens to be Egyptian Goddess who gave birth to Anubis! I'm just surprised that it can talk AND knows Ranma at the same time!"

"Ignoring the Peanut Gallery," Ranma said, "my Phoenix's second Special Ability just kicked in. Because she revived herself from the Graveyard, all Spell and Trap cards are destroyed!"

"But when my Amplifier is destroyed," Jinzo said, fearing for his life, "I go with it!"

"That's what you get for messing with the rules of life and death!" With a wave of the wings, Nephthys/Kiima had destroyed every Spell and Trap card on the field, which made Jinzo disappear back into the body. "And speaking of Life and Death, I play Premature Burial. By sacrificing 800 Life Points, I get to revive a monster from my Graveyard and place him in Attack Position, and I choose Solid Snake!"

(Ranma: 800.)

Rising from the Graveyard was a man in a tight jumpsuit equipped with high-tech gear.

"I've never seen that card before," Aki said, surprisingly.

"I don't think any of us have," Kyon said.

The Avatar was surprised as well. "Don't look at me," he said. "I didn't even know Pegasus would even HAVE that kind of card at hand. It's basically one of a kind!"

"So," Snake said to Ranma, "what are we dealing with?"

"Basically an evil spirit possessing a guy with psychic abilities," he replied. "He's got the appearance of something from an old horror movie and acts like both Psycho Mantis and The Fear."

"Figures. Ranko and Kiima told me about how the weird stuff attracts you. So, who goes first?"

"Ladies first, Snake. Sacred Phoenix, attack him directly! **SACRED ASH!**" The Phoenix did so, knocking the spirit out.

(Jinzo: 1300.)

"Snake, because of Premature Burial, you gain 500 extra Attack and Defense points, but for this attack, he's going to wish he wasn't created."

Solid Snake:

ATK: 2700.

DEF: 1700.

"Can't we talk about this?" Jinzo asked him.

"Not likely," Snake said. "Any last words?"

"LONG LIVE THE SHADOWS OF NECRO!"

"Snake, fire away."

Snake then rammed the body into the ground, ending the duel.

"He actually won!" Akiza yelled.

The Avatar then started to leave.

"Wait," Ranma said. "Couldn't you have stopped this from happening?"

"I can't interfere with a duel, Saotome," he replied. "Besides, you handled yourself pretty well for your first duel. Your opponent was just cocky that he was up against someone new to the game and didn't think of the consequences. Also, the original owner of the body is fine. He just needs some rest."

"Either way, I start to wonder why you appeared in my duel right after Gin's. I thought you wanted to duel him."

"I do, but not right now. Besides, you just won your first duel, let alone being a tournament one. If anything, you just became the next Joey Wheeler."

Ranma had heard of the guy. "So, you're calling me an Underdog?"

"Better than just a dog. By the way, you might want to collect your spoils, Victor."

Before the Chaos Magnet could reply, a groaning came to his attention.

"Glad to have you back, Koizumi," Kyon said. _Better him than a homicidal Duel Monster any day. The smile's more sarcastic than malicious._

"What just happened?" he asked Kyon. "Last thing I remember was going to bed, then everything's a blank."

"You want the short version or the long one?" Aki asked him. "Because from what I can see, you're out of the tournament after a possession."

Ranma just sighed. "Name's Ranma Saotome. Sorry about this, but because of that monster, you lost a spot in the tournament."

Koizumi just shook his head. "Figures," he said. "Then again, I wasn't planning to win it all to begin with. Now, let's see if I still have that thing…ah, here it is."

Instead of Jinzo, the card given to Ranma was Injection Fairy Lily.

"I think she prefers you over me."

_Great,_ Ranma thought. _First Ranko, then Mirage, and now this one. I'm starting to think that there's a God who has it in for me._ "Thanks, and I'm sorry for the defeat, but I had to make sure he didn't do any lasting damage."

"Better you than Kyon. From what he told me, you're lucky you have the Sacred Phoenix. And you basically earned the Locator Card from me, so take it in stride."

Aki was rolling her eyes. "You and your lax attitude," she said. "I'm starting to wonder why I wasn't assigned to the supposed God in the first place."

Kyon rolled HIS eyes. "Better him than you," he replied. "I'm the one CHOSEN by her, and she drives me up the wall even in my sleep. Speaking of which, who was that guy in the mask, Ranma?"

"I don't know," he replied, "but it's safe to say he's not on my list of people I pissed off."

"You mind explaining why?" Koizumi asked him.

"It's a long, complicated, and unbelievable story."

----

Minutes after the discussion, Yusei can be seen with a Locator Card in hand. His opponent, who was someone Ranma faced in the past, was on the ground, twitching.

_Two down,_ he thought, _four more to go. I just hope Mr. Goodshow is right about this._

However, he actually bumped into someone.

"Sorry about that," he said. However, he recognized the person. "Aki?"

"Didn't expect to see YOU here, Yusei," she replied. "Then again, I've seen some pretty unbelievable stuff happen today."

"Does it involve the Phoenix I saw off in the distance?"

"More like the guy wielding it. He actually beat the Crush Card Virus."

Yusei looked surprised. "By any chance did that guy have a pigtail, black hair, and a red shirt made directly from China?"

Aki was mostly indifferent, but was slightly glaring at him. "You know him?"

"Yeah, and to pull off something like that has to be something the first Underdog would be proud of. But other than that, I'm sure that there's something you found out from that duel."

"Unfortunately. The Shadows of Necro managed to get a Duel Spirit to possess someone, and it turned out to be the man guarding the supposed God."

Yusei groaned. "Their motive is clear then: They want sacrifices to revive something." _And considering that they'd even sacrifice Duel Spirits, it has to be something big. But what?_

Unfortunately, someone was eavesdropping onto their conversation. And it happened to be someone no one would expect.

_I knew it,_ she thought. _The disappearances in Nerima WERE linked to the supernatural! I'd better go find Kyon and give him a penalty for with-holding information._

Just inches away from the duel, Kyon had an involuntary shudder.

_Something tells me that someone just found out what they shouldn't know,_ he thought. _And if these Shadows of Necro guys don't kill us all first, then a certain someone I know would._

_And it's times like these that I wish I wasn't right._

To be continued…

----

(Koizumi's "Crippling Deadlock" Deck:

Effect Monsters:

Injection Fairy Lily (given to Ranma);

Jinzo; and

Jinzo-Returner.

Spell Cards:

Amplifier.

Trap Cards:

Crush Card Virus;

Imperial Order; and

Solemn Wishes.

Ranma's "Chaotic Nature" Deck (so far):

Effect Monsters:

Chaotic Catgirl (OC Card);

Field Commander-Rahz;

Fortress Warrior;

Illusion Panthress (OC Card);

Injection Fairy Lily (received from Koizumi);

Morphing Jar (representing his Curse);

Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys; and

Solid Snake (OC Card).

Spell Cards:

Premature Burial (Representing the contract).

Trap Cards:

Dimension Prison.

A/n: Oh crap…looks like Haruhi just found out something she didn't. And knowing how she is, Kyon's going to be the one who suffers from the change. How will this affect HIS duel?

Yes, you saw it here. Pantyhose Taro's the guy who actually brought ideas in a hat. It would explain the evil doppelganger and the possession acting like stereotypical cheesy cartoons from the 80s and 90s. Bakura's pissed at him for that…

Ranma just won his first duel (not counting the one he did with Jaden a couple chapters ago) and a reference to the First YuGiOh series is made. I know it's short, but I'm pretty sure some of you are asking "How the hell did Kiima, of all people, KIIMA of the PHOENIX TRIBE of JUNSEDO, get in his deck as the SACRED PHOENIX?!?" Well, like the Avatar said, the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys is named after the Egyptian Goddess who gave birth to Anubis, so it's basically a woman. Although I DID allude to a fight between it and Ranma…well, let's just say that Kiima is like Yubel only without the insanity caused by the Light of Destruction and the love for her king. Mix the memories of the Fight on Junsedo and the name of Saffron's loyal servant with the Duel Monster that's basically the legal version of Ra and you get internal conflict that turns into sibling rivalry.

Plus, more of the Avatar's intent is revealed. He doesn't watch the duelists who are skilled, but rather anyone who catches his interest, but why the pattern? First Jaden, then Atem, and now Ranma? What specific agenda does he have for those three? Better yet, what is the mask for, anyways?

Since Kuno and Happosai are already out of the duel, you can guess who Yusei's opponent was, although I'm leaning more to the figure skater with the dance partner who called Ryoga's pig form "Charlotte." He's the only Ranma non-main character I know of.

I can't exactly think of Omakes right now…so read and review.)


	12. Bonus: Nightshroud's Evil Council

The Horse and the King.

Bonus Chapter: The Shadows of Necrophades' Evil Council of Doom.

(A/n: I was inspired by LittleKuriboh's Abridged Parody "Marik's Evil Council of Doom." However, considering the crossover count, there's going to be at least one member from the other series crossed over with this one. And this is basically the only bonus chapter I've made that's actually relevant to the plot.)

----

Somewhere in Nerima…well, within the Darkness of Nerima in a parallel world that's similar to the Shadow Realm…a meeting was taking place that involves the recent happenings in the Juuban District.

"Welcome, everyone," a robed figure said to the others that were there. "Now, I'm sure you're all wondering why this meeting is in place. It involves silencing the reincarnated Supreme King as well as the revived Pharaoh and their friends. Before we begin, we must be familiar with each other. I am Nightshroud, the result of the building Darkness in the heart of Duelists everywhere."

"I am Bakura," the white-haired man said, "and I happen to be a veteran at this sort of thing."

"I am Brron, the Ruler of Dark World," the alien-like old man said, "and I'm here to steal Jim's Orichalcum Eye in order to revive the Supreme King's previous incarnation."

"TIR, reporting for duty, Nightshroud, SIR!" the smaller Zorc look-alike said.

Bakura was surprised at that one. "TIR? I can understand the T's for Tragoeida, but what does the I and R stand for?"

There was a silence at that one…then the behemoth responded, "I don't know!"

Bakura groaned. "Why does that not surprise me?"

"I am Kiryu Kousuke," the man in the hood said, "the strongest of the Dark Signers and the only one who plays card games on a motorbike."

Brron just laughed at the man.

"What the hell are you laughing about?"

The messenger just caught his breath at that time. "Card Games on motorbikes? Who thought THAT up?!?"

Bakura and Nightshroud just gave each other a small glance.

"Should we tell him?" the Tomb Robber asked him.

"Later," Nightshroud said. "Brron, we haven't started the meeting yet. At least wait until roll call is finished."

"I am Jadeite," the man wearing regal robes said, "and I'm the Youma splicer."

"My name is Taro," the yeti-riding-bull-while-carrying-crane-and-eel with tentacles sticking out of his back, "and I'm a Junsekyo-cursed man who's locked in this form."

"I've been meaning to ask about that," Nightshroud said. "Isn't that the place with the cursed springs?"

"Not anymore, and it's all Saotome's fault!"

"Yes, yes," Bakura said, groaning. "We've heard it a million times coming from the torture chamber. Spare us the theatrics, you bloody wanker."

"Zug Zug," the fat man in the cloak said.

"What did he just say?" Nightshroud asked Bakura.

"That's Gosunkui," he replied. "He's also from Nerima, but somehow, he thinks he's an Orc Shaman in a horde."

"Great. A World of Warcraft fan."

"My name is Ryoko Asakura," the spectral schoolgirl said, "and I've come close to actually killing one of the Chosen Duelists, until Yuki interfered."

"Did better than me," the raven-haired woman said. "I'm known as Mistress 9, and I've actually possessed one of the Sailor Senshi."

Nightshroud check that one off the list. "Right, so everyone's here."

"Wait a minute," Bakura said. "These are all the villains we could find?"

"In a last-minute preparation job, it's best not to ask questions. Besides, just be glad we've got an actual Neriman in the meeting."

"Quite true. It's hard to find a good gem among that mental institute of a city."

"Zug Zug," Gosunkui said, relieved.

"But still, why did we have to extract the seed from that Senshi in the first place?"

Mistress Nine growled. "Why did YOU get copied in that Millennium Ring knockoff in the first place?" she asked the Tomb Robber.

"It was the folly of the Chinese Amazons that caused me to show up in the first place. You, however, are a result of Jadeite's experiments."

"I'll have you know that I made better progress in taking over the world than you did."

"Oh please. You're not the one who reversed the clock on that."

"SILENCE!" Nightshroud said. "Before this meeting diverts, I'll have you all know that I'm not as forgiving on shenanigans as your original leaders were."

"I had a leader?" Tragoedia asked him.

"Shut up. We're here to plan an attack on our enemies! And if possible, the Avatar, because he's a thorn in our side."

"For an original character," Kiryu said, disregarding the fourth wall, "he's not exactly doing anything. Why do we need to get rid of him, anyways?"

Nightshroud couldn't find an answer to that one. "I don't know, but he took out Kuno with one hit, and he SUCKS as a duelist."

"The Avatar or Kuno?" Brron asked Nightshroud.

"Kuno."

"Oh."

"If I make a suggestion, Lord Nightshroud," Jadeite started.

"Does it involve human cloning?" The reaper look-alike asked him. There was silence on that part. "Right…moving on."

"Why not just stab them in the face with a knife?" Ryoko asked them.

Bakura took interest in that one. "As much as it would be fun to do," he said, "we can't. Although the author's not 4Kids, we're just focusing on dueling them into the Shadow Realm."

"We could release their inner Haou," Brron said. "It worked for unleashing the Supreme King."

"Too obvious," Nightshroud said. "We need something cunning and evil. Something involving a used plot from a movie the humans enjoy…"

"We could extract their hearts," Tragoedia said.

Mistress Nine was surprised at that one. "That's what the possessed father tried to do with the victims in order to revive me," she said.

"Not like that. I meant letting them suffer the same fate I did."

Kiryu shook his head. "Now, it's ripping off Kingdom Hearts."

"King-da what?" There was a massive face-fault at THAT response.

After re-seating himself, Nightshroud then yelled, "How the hell are we supposed to do THAT!?! The closest thing to it involves borrowing Mistress Nine's Death Buster technology, and THEY don't make the humans turn into Youma!"

"Wait just a bloody minute," Bakura said. "He's not a result from a Heart Extraction. Hell, he's not even related to Zorc himself!"

"Then enlighten us, Tomb Robber," Brron said. "What the hell IS Tragoedia?"

"It's hard to explain…but Tragoedia happens to be Winged Kuriboh's twin brother."

Dead silence…

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!" everyone else yelled. It was basically expected from a soap opera or a sitcom (coughZorcandPalscough), but why the HELL did the Tomb Robber bring THAT up?

"They don't even LOOK alike!" Mistress Nine yelled. "How is that even possible?"

Bakura groaned. "If everyone could shut up, wench, I'll tell you."

"Please do," Jadeite said. "I'm not even sure I can confirm that one."

"Well, you all know Kuriboh's a Fiend Monster, but what do you know about Hektols?"

Nightshroud groaned. "You mean the fused form of all three Egyptian God Cards?"

Bakura nodded. "After the fight between her and Zorc, she dropped off the radar for millennia. However, we recently found out that she was in labor for years."

There was a stunned silence, but Tragoedia was the one to break it. "I miss Mommy Hekky…WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME!?!"

"But how is that possible?" Taro asked Bakura. "Hektols is a behemoth of Light while Kuriboh's a fluffball. I may not be a Duelist, but even I can tell it's nearly impossible."

"Does the Spell Card 'Multiply' mean anything to you?" Bakura asked them.

"You are so going to hell for that," Nightshroud said. "Now can we get back to business? One of you idiots has to have a plan to defeat them!"

"If I may…" Jadeite started to say.

"No, we're not cloning them! What do you take me for, Gendo Ikari?"

Jadeite shook his head. "From the battle data with Jinzo, I could tell that the Chosen Ryoko tried to kill had someone powerful as an acquaintance."

"Oh yeah," Ryoko said in realization. "We could hold Haruhi for ransom."

Brron was angry. "Are you mad, Ryoko?" he asked her. "I was going to suggest kidnapping the King's betrothed, but who you've suggested is practically suicide!"

"And I say you're BOTH nuts," Mistress Nine said. "Why not use the Tendo girl as bait to lure the newbie duelist into a trap?"

"Because we've already suggested that she would be Tragoedia's vessel," Bakura said. "Then again, we'd only be fined for holding her for ransom considering HER history of kidnappings. And although Ranma's a newer duelist, he's an experienced fighter that would put Zorc out with just a punch to the groin."

"I command you all to shut the [EFF] up!" Nightshroud yelled. "Ryoko, you're suggesting suicide. Brron, we're not touching THAT with a ten-foot pole. Mistress Nine, Bakura, we're going with both ideas, but we're going to need the Trueman clones to stall the other duelists from arriving."

Brron growled. "I was talking about Miss Rhodes!" he yelled.

"Oh. I thought you meant Yubel. Well, one problem with that: After the fight with me, all those who were possessed by me are immune to mind control."

"Some setback," Bakura said. "I'm starting to think those wenches put the setbacks on the copies for that reason."

"Zug Zug," Gosunkui said, plainly.

"Yeah, they are stubborn like that."

However, someone's phone rang at that moment.

"Hang on a second," Kiryu said. "I have to take this call." He then turned it on. "Make it quick. I'm in a meeting with my superiors right now." There was a slight pause. "Say what? I swear to the Death Spider, you have got to be joking on that." Pause, again. "Okay, fine. My boss looks like he's about to burst anyways." Kiryu hung up on the man.

"Who was that?" Bakura asked the rider.

"That was D Carly. She said that the Suzumiya girl's on the move. Apparently, she overheard the Black Rose Witch's conversation with Yusei."

Ryoko flinched. "She's not in the tournament, is she?"

"If she was, Zorc help us all. Instead, her human friend is, and HE happens to be one of our targets. I believe you tried to kill him, Ryoko?"

Nightshroud slammed his fist against the table. "THIS is why we can't kidnap her! Once she's aware of our existence, we're at risk of fading into nothingness!"

"Then we'll have to send her friend into the Shadow Realm immediately," Bakura said. "Nightshroud, send in…The D."

"Consider it done. Jadeite, continue your experiments. The rest of you are excused. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to look for more Duelists to convert."

Everyone then faded from the meeting room…except for Bakura, who looked like he was waiting for someone.

"Do they suspect anything, Bakura?" that someone said in a distorted voice.

"Not likely," he replied. "They're too wrapped up in their own agendas to even notice that I stole the copies."

"Continue your work. Once Zorc is revived, we can dispose of them and rule the world with an iron fist."

"In case you've forgotten, I'm the one who released you from the Shadow Realm in the first place. And second, you need to keep a low profile until the time is right. I have a feeling that Nightshroud isn't as stupid as he is ugly."

"But I'm tired of hiding! I want to send someone to the Shadow Realm NOW!!!"

"You'll get your chance, but be patient. Once we get the cards, you'll have all the souls to send there."

"You'd better keep your promise. Otherwise you'll end up in the same sticky fate that awaited you Ten Years ago."

"I don't plan on losing this time. And what happened ten years ago was a fluke. I had no idea the Pharaoh's Light had enough Duel Prowess to take me out."

"Well, look forward to the prize in this year's Battle City. You'll get your revenge on Yugi Muto soon enough."

Bakura then smirked at the figure. "I know, Malik. I know."

_Dun-dun-DUUUUUUUUUUUUN!!!_

The end?!?

----

(A/n: Okay, let me explain myself for this:

First off, I didn't rip off the Abridged Series. When I wrote this, I had the Super Friends' evil council in mind with Nightshroud as Lex Luthor and Bakura as the Joker.

Second, since I didn't know what Tragoedia's character was, I thought "Why not go with the AU and give him GIR's personality?" Gir's owned by Nickelodeon, by the way.

Third, I made the "Kuriboh/Hektols Love Affair" explanation up with regards to the GX Manga plot. I mean, seriously, Winged Kuriboh is the Heart of Tragoedia? SOMETHING had to have happened, other than the Heart Extraction thing. That, and I'd hate to be the Jerry Springer host for THAT one. Would make a good Zorc and Pals episode, though.

Fourth, I'm not a Haruhiist, but something had to have gone awry with them fearing her. And sending in "The D," who's experienced with assassinations involving Duel Monsters, had to mean something behind her was up that made even NIGHTSHROUD cringe in fear.

Fifth, Jadeite was never killed by Beryl. Just frozen in time. After Nightshroud lost against Jaden, he had found the former General while escaping. It was through him that they gained the Duel Monsters/Youma merging idea in mind. Also, Dr. Tomoe had a backup body for Mistress Nine in case something happened to Hotaru, so he found that as well.

Sixth, Gosunkui was suggested by a reviewer. How he got the Orc personality involved Akane's mallet. Taro, however, got splashed by the Locking Ladle, which locked him in his cursed form, which is a mix of the Springs of Drowned Yeti-Riding-On-Bull-With-Crane-And-Eel and Octopus.

Seventh, Ryoko Asakura was found floating in the Data Integrated Thought Entity's version of the Recycle Bin and Kiryu found her.

Eighth, Bakura's accomplice happened to be Yami Marik, or Malik as I misinterpreted him as. I couldn't think of anyone competent enough (or crazy, apparently) to fill the henchman job since Keith was out of the question.

Finally, this wasn't intended to be canon. I don't know what happened or how it was possible, but I managed to somehow make it fit into the plot. I just happen to be crazy like this.

Now, I present to you…what happens when you mix Anime Characters with a Mecha Parody…from America!)

--

The ignition starts, the buttons are pressed, the gears are set, and the Duel Table's ready.

What pops out of the garage is a giant robot in the style of Iron Man…with a car on its head…driven by…Jaden?!?

After the carnage, the infantry is taken out by a red-haired woman from the future…or Yoko Littner from Gurren Lagann and Yubel acting as a human (?!?) shield.

Apparently, Jesse and Yusei are along for the ride. Yusei's the assistant mechanic and Jesse's the best friend.

As the Giant Robot pile-drives the enemy, we cut to the title screen.

YuGiOh XLR. AKA, X-over, Lagann Riders.

Wow…We are definitely screwed.

--

(Okay, that was weird. I think I should cut back on the caffene.

Apparently, YuGiOh + Megas + Gurren Lagann + Caffine – Rationality = Crack with a tendency to make the world explode in complete idiocy instead of awesome.

Don't take it seriously, PLEASE. It's basically an extension on the idea of Card Games on Motorbikes…only with a Giant Robot. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go chastize myself. Read and Review.)


	13. Haruhi Retrieval

The Horse and the King.

Chapter 12: Prelude to War. The SOS Dilemma.

----

_With what's happening to Koizumi,_ Kyon thought, _I have a feeling that sooner or later, Haruhi's going to figure out the reason why we're here in the first place. Why is it always me that gets the brunt of her weirdness? Not to mention that once she's aware, she's going to be a live wire._

Thoughts of panic had flown through the head of the young Duelist walking through certain areas. Apparently, he didn't want to be seen, yet Haruhi would always find him. Now he's starting to wish he never asked Mikuru for a way to adjust history as "John Smith."

"Hey, Kyon!" he heard a male voice say. "You look pale. What's up?"

"Just that I fear someone I know found out about something she shouldn't, Jaden," Kyon replied to the Slifer. "You know the one."

Jaden flinched. "I pity you, man. Besides, I heard about the duel between Ranma and Jinzo. Apparently, who Kaiba's trying to lure is using fragments from our pasts to the surface."

Kyon groaned. _Not exactly helping there._ "That means they could use anyone who would want us dead." _And I fear Ryoko's involved with it._ "And if possible, they could take the form of the dead, like Koyo."

"If that's the case, keep reminding yourself he's not like that. If anything, I managed to win another Locator Card from an old friend of mine."

"Dare I ask who it was?"

"My senior, Zane. Apparently, he's going as himself instead of Hell Kaizer Zane. He also gave me one of his Cyber Dragons, too."

Kyon was surprised. "I've only managed to grab one from Weevil Underwood, and HE was caught cheating. Which means I'm basically behind while you're ascending the ranks."

Jaden was smirking at his old friend. "Well, it helps when you have luck and spirits by your side. Besides, I'm wondering if you've lost your touch any."

"Keep dreaming. Back then, I could duel circles around you, but I'm waiting until the finals."

"THERE YOU ARE!" they heard a female voice yell. Kyon flinched in terror because he KNEW that he was getting the "Death Penalty." "Is there any reason why you've been quiet during the whole trip? And who is this?"

"Haruhi," Kyon said, "this is Jaden, an old friend of mine when I was in the hospital that day. Jaden, this is Haruhi Suzumiya, the SOS Brigade leader."

_So THIS is Haruhi,_ Jaden thought. _I can see why Kyon wanted to keep her in the dark about this, but considering her power's tendency to stagnate, I think she has a lack of control in it._ "Nice to meet you, Haruhi," he said. "And Kyon's basically my rival."

"Rival, huh?" she asked him. "Well, do you mind explaining why Koizumi's out of the tournament?"

Kyon and Jaden exchanged glances, then said, "He lost a duel." They dared not say WHO beat him or the circumstances involved, or the consequences would be dire.

"Right, I forgot about the rules. But still, that doesn't excuse you from the Death Penalty."

Kyon groaned. "Don't remind me," he said. "But wait until after the tournament. I just removed the Parasite card Weevil planted in my deck before I dueled him."

"Oh, THAT Weevil Underwood?" Jaden asked him. "Yeah, that guy's not exactly one of my favorite duelists, especially after Duelist Kingdom. I kind of thought he died."

"Back to why I'm here," Haruhi said, "I want to know why this tournament is in progress. I've seen the first Battle City, and from what I can tell, something with the Kaibacorp Dueling System went haywire during the finals. Something's telling me that this version is for the same thing."

Jaden chuckled while Kyon groaned. They were aware of what happened ten years ago, but it was before Haruhi had activated her powers.

_We're all going to die,_ Kyon thought. _Her intuition is going to get her killed one day._

_Now I see why Kyon was trying to avoid her,_ Jaden thought.

Before either of them could explain, someone had jumped in.

"Hello, boys," the man said.

Jaden growled. "It's the D!" he yelled.

The man, now recognized as The D, laughed. "I'm surprised you recognize me, Yuki. Then again, you're not the one I want to face." He then turned to Kyon and said, "Meet me at the abandoned warehouse near the coast of Juuban."

Kyon growled. "And why should I?"

"Because if you don't, your girlfriend will fall into the Shadow Realm for all eternity."

That was the moment where they noticed Haruhi was missing.

"What have you done with her?!?" he yelled.

"And you're working for Nightshroud?" Jaden asked him.

"Follow me, if you value your girlfriend's life." With that, the D disappeared into a nearby helicopter.

Kyon growled. _This guy has no idea that he's signing his death warrant,_ he thought. "We're going to have to follow them," he said.

"But we don't know where the Abandoned Warehouse is," Jaden said. "And even if we did, it's on the other side of the city, which means unless we make a straight line, we're going to be diverted."

"Then you could use some help," a man's voice said, making both Duelists turn around. As it turns out, Yusei, Atem, Aki, and Ranma were in the area. "Sorry we're late, but we kind of owe Mr. Goodshow a favor."

"You mean the Head Esper?" Kyon asked them.

"For the record," Yusei said, "I prefer the Signers. Besides, it's kind of important for you and Haruhi to remain in the same plane or else existence will become nothingness."

Kyon growled. "Lead the way."

"Not just yet," they heard a man yell. Apparently, Ryoga and Nabiki were riding with a man in a cross between a motorcycle and a wheel. "Whoever this D guy is, it's not the first time he's killed someone."

"What do you mean by that?" Ranma asked him.

"He means that if Kyon loses," Jaden replied, "not only will Haruhi be sent to the Shadow Realm, but he'll die by his hands. Just like Aster's father."

That brought a reaction out of them.

"Then we're dealing with more than just a simple kidnapping," Aki said. "They must be willing to risk everyone in the WORLD in order to pull something like THAT off."

Kyon frowned. "If anything, I'm not just saving Haruhi. And Jack Atlas, I presume?"

"Second Signer," Jack said. "We're bringing in Crow, Leo, and Luna in as a last resort."

"Crow's one of our old teammates," Yusei said. "Leo and Luna are twins, but Luna has the trait while Leo's the better Duelist."

"At least there aren't any eliminators involved," Jaden said. "Lead the way."

"Hop on," Yusei said, activating the D-Runner's Sidecars. "This is basically for tag-team dueling, and it's still in the testing stage. I'm not sure if I can fit everyone in there, though…"

"We'll make do," Atem said. "Right now, just head towards the Warehouse."

As they rode on, no one else noticed the Avatar watching.

"They may be brave," he said, "but they'll need some help. If The D's working for Nightshroud, then he's on my hit list."

With that, a green D-Runner in a design similar to Yusei's only with the Poker Card Suits in different colors (gold spade, red heart, black diamond, and blue club) appeared. The Avatar himself hopped on it and rode towards their location.

_The game is set. All I need to do is unlock the last Rider. Then, and only then will I show my face._ The diamond parted to reveal the ice-blue eyes of his Haou heritage.

----

When they got there, the Duel Runners were parked to the side.

"This is the abandoned warehouse?" Kyon asked them.

"It was only used once," Ryoga said. "I don't know the full details, but it involved a battle involving weapons that stemmed from the heart."

Ranma gave his rival a knowing look. "You got lost and ended up here sometime ago, didn't you?"

"More or less."

"Then we're basically in the dark."

"Not necessarily," Atem said. "Her composition's similar to that of the Egyptian God Cards, so I'll be leading the way."

"Good luck," they all heard a familiar voice say. Apparently, the Avatar had caught up with them. "From what I can see, the place is FILLED with Duel Youma, so he might have been expecting some company."

"Who is this?" Nabiki asked Ranma. "Another one of your rivals?"

"Fortunately, no," he replied. "Just a guy who's been watching certain duels, one of them involving Happosai and Gin here."

Atem recognized him. "I see," he said. "But why are you here? I thought your main interest was Nightshroud."

"He came to the same conclusion I did," Jaden said. "And it involves Nightshroud."

The Avatar nodded. "Considering the circumstances, I'd say I'll be here for support. It's not my business to get involved with personal vendettas. Especially when it involves both Jaden and Kyon."

"It's not a vendetta," Kyon said. "I'm just trying to save the world from erasure. It's a complicated story, but…"

"We'll explain later," Jaden interjected. "If we wait any longer, we're risking the world's safety."

"I know." That surprised the two who knew what Haruhi was capable of. "In order to maintain a successful escape, we're going to have to separate into groups. One of them will have to save Haruhi while the others will take care of the Youma. As for Kyon and Jaden, they're coming with me."

"I'll get Haruhi," Ranma said. "The Umi-Sen-Ken is a cloaking technique that makes me undetectable to Ki-adepts. I just implemented it with the Shadow Magic to make myself undetectable to Haou in the process."

Yusei nodded. "I've got your back, Ranma."

"As will I," Ryoga said. "I may not be as adept as you all are, but at least I can hold my own in a battle."

"That leaves the rest of us taking care of the Duel Youma," Jack said. "And if there are extra Locator Cards, we'll be sure to give them to you."

Kyon nodded. "Keep to that promise."

"Looks like it's just you and me, Kyon," Jaden said. "And our Masked Man, too."

The Avatar was surprised. "After this is over, I'll explain why I'm in this tournament. And it's the full story this time."

With a nod, Operation "Saving God" was in effect. Watching them, however, were those who wanted a piece of the action.

"You know your objectives?" the masked man asked in a distorted voice.

"While Tragoedia and your Mind Slave go after two of the Avatar's Chosen, I'll take on Yusei while you deal with the meddlesome Duelist."

"Right, and the Duel Youma will get rid of the Pharaoh for us," the cloaked figure said. "I'll go for the one who has my other half." With that, the figure disappeared.

"Mind Slave, cross Ranma's path," the masked figure said. "With the cards I gave you, you'll be able to psych him out."

"Yes, Master Mu," the second cloaked figure said, leaving in a flurry of kitchen products.

Kiryu looked at the masked man in question. "Was it a good idea to send her in Ranma's path?" he asked him. "I mean, he knows 'Steve' personally, and there's the fact that Pig Boy's with them as well."

"That's the whole beauty of the plan, Kiryu," Mu replied. "Ranma's the only one with a technique to ruin our plans. What better way to handle it than to send in someone from Nerima? As for the Lost Boy, he doesn't have any significance to ancient pasts like that of the Pharaoh's and the Supreme King's, so he'll be easy pickings."

Kiryu sighed. "Alright, but you're running the same risk your lighter half did when he sent the Mutt to duel Yugi to the Death."

"This time, it will be different."

"Really reassuring there. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be off. My mark is calling me." With that, Kiryu disappeared in a blue light.

Mu smirked under his mask. _Nightshroud wanted me to take out the Avatar in the finals,_ he thought. _Unfortunately, I'll have to bring the cards that will cripple him early, as well as the second copy of the God Card I once had._ He then gave out a smirk that was inhuman. _If anything, the Shadow Game I have planned for him will be one that will end his dueling career FOREVER!!!_

----

(With Ranma, Yusei, and Ryoga)

"Okay," Ranma said, "for a warehouse, it's pretty clean."

They got into the left hallway that led to the duel arena, and they were mostly lost.

"All hallways in a warehouse lead to the same location," Yusei said. "If we're lucky, we'll appear before Kyon gets there."

"If it's any consolation," Ryoga said, "I'm still surprised that I'm here."

"Yeah, we know," Ranma said. "You're usually lost most of the time. No wait…ALL the time."

Ryoga growled. "That was before. Now, we need to focus on rescuing Haruhi, remember?"

Before any further arguments could take place, a spatula had landed in front of them, stopping the Rescue Team in their tracks.

"I know that technique," Ranma said. "Ukyo? Where are you?"

"There is no Ukyo," the robed figure said. "There is only Steve."

Yusei recognized that tone. "She's being controlled by a higher power," he said. "And somehow, the requirement involves a name change…but how is that possible?"

Ranma then remembered something Cologne said about the Millennium Items, but what was the one that could control other people's minds? It sure as hell wasn't the Puzzle, and the Key only enters the mind…so that leaves… "Oh boy. We're dealing with someone who stole the Amazonian Replicas of the Millennium Items, and she's being controlled by the Rod!"

"But why the name change?" Ryoga asked Ranma.

"I'm thinking it's a requirement, considering it only controls people with a certain name…and Steve happens to be that name. Nightshroud must be a sick bastard."

"That's right, Saotome," the mind-controlled Ukyo said, "and because of the circumstances, you can either duel me, or save the Maiden, and believe me, you'll lose everything when you make either choice."

"I accept," Ranma said, but Ryoga stopped him.

"Why waste your time Dueling him when you can duel someone like me?" he asked Ukyo.

"Ryoga…"

Ryoga took a glance at Ranma. "You're the only one who can access the Umi-Sen-Ken, Ranma. And from what I can tell, I'm not exactly going to let someone connected to you die a painful death. Besides, if you fail to make it there, I'll make you see hell."

Ranma nodded. "Alright, but you're going to have to break the hold. If she's in the Shadow Realm, you're getting a thrashing."

"I'll keep that in mind. Now, GO!"

With the opportunity given, both the Wild Horse and the Stardust Signer ran towards their destination.

"Why help him, Hibiki?" Ukyo asked him. "Isn't he the one that caused you hell?"

"Let's just say that he and I have a similar agenda, Kuonji," Ryoga replied. "Now are you going to duel me, or not?"

"Very well, but you're well-aware of the stakes involved."

"I know, I know…geez, you're worse than that Roba guy."

Both Ukyo/Steve and Ryoga activated their Duel Disks.

"LET'S DUEL!"

(Ryoga: 4000.)

(Ukyo/Steve: 4000.)

----

(With Kyon, Jaden, and the Avatar)

"Not exactly the best situation that's involved," Jaden said, "but at least it's close to home."

"Except for the warehouse and the increasing shadows," Kyon said. "Feels like I've entered a closed space, only it's more sinister."

"That's the effects of Shadow Magic," the Avatar replied. "It's mostly harmless, but when pain is involved, it can be deadly."

Kyon flinched. "Mental note, don't get too much damage."

"So, you've arrived," a female figure in a cloak said. "And with the Avatar to boot. Looks like you're out of luck, considering the circumstances."

The Avatar bristled. "Who the hell are you?" he asked the cloaked figure.

"I believe the King knows my host, but the Kuriboh in his deck knows me very well. After all, I killed the mentor before they went to the Academy."

Jaden growled. "Tragoedia," he said.

Kyon blinked. "Nightshroud drew HIM into this!?!" he yelled.

"We're dealing with an enemy that uses every single trick in the book to get what they want," the Avatar said. "Even if it means bringing up ghosts from the past."

"And I know who he's possessing, too," the Supreme King replied. "Akane Tendo, I presume?"

The figure took off the cloak to reveal Ranma's forced fiancée thanks to Genma's interference. "Brilliant deduction," Tragoedia replied in Akane's voice. "Then again, you managed to ruin the plan to bring Master Nightshroud back by ridding the Blood Heir and the Spare from their corruption, and for that, you must pay, Jaden Yuki!"

Jaden only kept a solemn face. "Avatar. Kyon. Go."

Kyon was surprised. "You sure you want to do this?" he asked his old friend. "I mean, he did kill Koyo…"

"All the more reason for me to do it. Kyon, Haruhi needs you to rescue her. Not me, not the Avatar. YOU. Besides, this guy has it coming."

"Do what he says, Kyon," the Avatar said, startling Kyon. "I'd duel the being myself, but we've got bigger problems. Besides, I'm confident that Jaden can take out the GIR of Fiends."

"What's GIR?" Tragoedia asked the Avatar.

Kyon sweat-dropped. "I see…" _Another mental note. Keep Haruhi AWAY from the gajin cartoon with the alien and the stupid robot._

Both the Avatar and the only human in the SOS Brigade went forward, leaving Jaden to deal with a possessed Akane.

"So, how should we settle this?" Tragoedia asked him. "Ring of Fire? Crucifix? Shadow game with the combination of the two? Either way, I'll sing the Doom Song now."

"Do it as a victory fanfare," Jaden said. "Because you've had this coming for years, Tragoedia!!! GET YOUR GAME ON!"

"Acknowledged."

(Jaden: 4000.)

(Akane/Tragoedia: 4000.)

----

(With Jack, Aki, Nabiki, and Atem/Gin)

Entering an empty space, the three Signers and Pharaoh were surprised that the place wasn't filled to the brim.

"I thought Youma Production involved plenty of beasts," Nabiki said, confused.

"They do," Jack said, "but for some reason, it's empty as a Munich's Underpass."

"Which isn't empty at all?" Atem asked him. "Seriously, did you sneak into Kaiba's Blackadder collection, Jack?"

"I've only seen a few episodes…"

"We'll discuss that later," Aki said. "Right now, be reminded that an empty field can also contain traps."

Atem recognized the effect. "Like Gorz, the Emissary of Darkness?"

"Exactly. If the player has THAT card in their hand, Direct Attacking is a no-go."

"Wise words to live by," a man's voice said. "Unfortunately, it won't do you any good, Signers. And it's been a long time, Pharaoh."

Atem felt a pang of familiarity. "Tomb Robber?" he asked the shadowy voice.

"Right on the money. And for the record, I'm part of the organization Nightshroud runs."

"Well, now I feel stupid."

"What makes you say that?" Nabiki asked Atem.

"Shadows of Necro is easier to say because it's another way of saying the Servants of Zorc Necrophades. Zorc happens to be known as the Dark Master in Duel Monsters, and it's obvious who they're trying to bring back."

Bakura smirked. "That reaction was quicker than expected," he said. "Yes, we're reviving Zorc Necrophades. Why do you think we stole the Amazonian Replicas, although when the Youma are done feasting on your corpses, we'll take the Signer Dragons and your Puzzle to hasten the process."

"For the record, the Puzzle's a part of my being. And secondly, I don't picture you as the type to follow orders. Dare I ask if there's some kind of Monarch involved, like the Venture Brothers?"

"Nightshroud's the Monarch, and before you ask, we don't have any nameless henchmen. Just a bunch of men and women whose names are Steve, thanks to the setbacks of the Replicas."

The four on the lower level blinked.

"Just like the Nanban Mirror," Nabiki said. "If I find Cologne, I'm going to beat some sense into her head, Kiss of Death be damned."

Atem nodded. "And it looks like their Puzzle's not as strong," he said. "However, the Ring's not exactly reacting to it."

Bakura frowned. "That's because the Millennium Item locator's been replaced with a Gaydar."

"A gay-what?"

"Basically something that looks for homosexuals," Jack said. "Which reminds me, did it point to any of the Senshi?"

"Considering that you're not going to live through the process," Bakura said, "it only pointed to Uranus and Neptune. They must be together."

Jack slightly drooled while Aki punched him in the arm.

"Perv," she said.

Atem sweat-dropped. "I'd ask, but it involves something mind-scarring."

"Don't ask me," Nabiki said. "I've only been part of it for a few days."

"We've wasted enough time," Bakura said. "Steve, release the Duel Youma!"

"On it, Master Bakura," the cloaked man said.

Bakura smirked. "Have fun with the pets. I'm going to go look for gay pe—er, possible candidates for our Steve Army. I'll let one of Kiryu's hangers-on clean up the corpses." With a maniacal laugh, Bakura disappeared in the shadows.

From the now-open garage, what looked like Duel Monsters with Negative Energy in their beings appeared.

"Activate your Duel Disks!" Atem yelled.

All three of them nodded, activating their respective Duel Disks.

"How can they do this to them?" Nabiki asked Atem.

"The question I'm asking myself is how they're able to mass-produce this many," Atem said. "From what I can tell, it takes a lot of work making ONE."

"You don't think an actual Youma Creator's involved with this, do you?" Aki asked the former Pharaoh.

"We'll ask ourselves this when we get out," Jack said. "Right now, focus on surviving!"

Atem growled. "In order to survive, we're going to need to screw the rules, as Kaiba would put it simply. Either way, make sure that you conserve your stronger cards in case something big comes up!"

(Jack: 4000.)

(Aki: 4000.)

(Nabiki: 4000.)

(Atem: 4000.)

----

(With Ranma and Yusei)

"You think it was the right thing to leave Ryoga with Ukyo?" Ranma asked Yusei.

"You're needed as the distraction, Ranma," Yusei replied. "And Ryoga knows what he's doing. He's trained himself for this opportunity."

Ranma was still uncertain, but when they entered the next room, they were surprised at the lack of torture devices.

"Ah, welcome," a mysterious voice said. "I've been expecting you both. Especially Yusei."

"Who the hell are you?" Ranma asked him.

Yusei, however, recognized the voice. "Kiryu," he said. "Show yourself!"

"Very well," Kiryu said. From the shadows, a man with a cloak appeared…and his eyes, where the white should be, were black as Death itself. "Surprised to see your old friend, Yusei?"

Ranma was surprised at that. "You know this guy?" he asked Yusei.

"Know him?" Yusei replied. "I attended his funeral."

"You mean he's a zombie?!?"

"This is the power of the Dark Signers. The ability to revive the dead, but at a cost of their souls. Which meant the man I once knew as a friend is gone and something unnatural is possessing his body."

Kiryu smirked. "That's the gist of it," he said. "Now, I don't really care what you do, Wild Horse, but my business is with Yusei."

Ranma was surprised, but then noticed Yusei's look.

"All right," Ranma said. "But keep yourself alive for the finals, Yusei."

"I plan to," he replied. "Now stick to the plan. I intend to settle this once and for all."

With that, Ranma ran out, leaving both men behind.

"I don't know what business you have with Nightshroud," Yusei said, "but you're not getting the best of me this time."

"After the forces take care of the other nuisances," Kiryu said, "you'll be disoriented enough for me to grasp victory. And we're going through the Traditional Duel, not the Turbo Duel, as Battle City rules state."

With that, both men activated their Duel Disks.

"REV IT UP!" they both yelled.

(Yusei: 4000.)

(Kiryu: 4000.)

----

(With Kyon and the Avatar)

Kyon and the Avatar were running through the hallway while Jaden was dueling the possessed Akane.

"You know about Jaden's Haou powers," Kyon said.

"That's correct," the Avatar replied. "And I also know that you're not as normal as Koizumi claims. After all, the strongest Haou are bound through time and space."

"But considering that you know about them, I can only assume you're one?"

"That's correct."

_That would explain why he knew what Ranma had in his deck,_ he thought, _but something about this guy seems familiar._ "I can't help but think we've met before. By any chance do you know a guy named Koyo Hibiki?"

"Name doesn't ring a bell. And I told you that I would explain myself if we survive the ambush."

_Wait, ambush?_ "You mean they were expecting us?"

The Avatar nodded. "And from what I can tell, the trials we're facing involve duelists from the Greenhorn, then the Experienced, and finally the D himself. That's why I suggested splitting up. As for the other four, they'll survive. After all, I didn't arrive alone."

_Thanks for the cryptic message, Lelouch. Now I'm starting to wonder if you're Aki's ex-boyfriend before she met Yusei._

However, there was a maniacal laugh from the shadows. "Ah, so good of you to join us," he said. "But be warned, you're about to face the wrath of Nothingness."

"And you're ripping off Xemnas," Kyon said to the figure. "Nothingness?"

"I prefer the name Mu," the masked man replied. "Pleasure to meet your acquaintance, but I'm afraid this is your last meeting."

"I know you," the Avatar said. "You're the guy that killed my teammates!"

Mu smirked underneath the mask. "Ah, and you're a sight for sore eyes. Then again, hiding under a mask so you can make your mark as an unknown being is basically something I'd expect from a villain like myself. Then again, only those you trust know your real identity, and they've died by my hand!"

_Is that why he wasn't willing to trust anyone?_ Kyon then saw the Avatar in a new light. _Wait a minute, now I know where I met this guy!_ "So, which deck are you using? I doubt your civilian deck could go up against a guy like that."

The Avatar was surprised, and Mu was smirking.

"Looks like you're not as dumb as you look," the Avatar said. "I guess I won't need this anymore." With that, he then tossed the mask onto the floor to reveal Andrew from the entrance ceremony.

"If we're discarding masks," Mu said, "then I'd better do the same." Mu then took off his Lelouch-colored mask to reveal a darker form of Marik. "I prefer the name Malik, considering it's similar to Malice, and I'm going to do what my other half wouldn't think of doing."

"That is one ugly mother…" Kyon started to say.

"Kyon, stay out of this!" Andrew yelled. "Besides, I think you're needed elsewhere."

"Right," Kyon said. "And I'm sorry for the insult during the start of the tournament." With that, he ran out of the doors, leaving Andrew and Malik in position.

"Before we begin," Malik said, "let's make this game a little interesting." The shadows then increased in an odd purple hue, engulfing the two duelists. "I'm a master of torture, so I'm adding this to the stakes: Along with my Locator Cards, I'll offer my whole deck if you can send me back. But if you lose, I'll make sure that you suffer the same fate your friends did."

Andrew glared. "And the Shadow Game involves me seeing their deaths from their point of view," he said. "Seriously, Malik, you're about as original as Kishimoto when it involves torture through cursed eyes."

Malik grinned. "And you're going to suffer the same sticky end they faced once your life points hit zero. And for the record, I don't know anybody by that name. I'm just using the body I last appeared in."

"I can see that. And you're using the Rod knock-off? Seriously, how many Steves do you have, anyways?"

"I don't know. I just bring in the vic...er, applicants. Now prepare to face the onslaught that this Shadow Game contains!"

Andrew glared. "For the memory of my friends and the sake of the world, I will win this Shadow Game and make sure you take a one way ticket STRAIGHT TO HELL, YOU MURDEROUS BASTARD!!!"

(Andrew: 4000.)

(Malik: 4000.)

----

Kyon then arrived in the next room which connected both hallways.

"Kyon!" Haruhi yelled from the rafters. "I knew you'd arrive."

"Hang on, Haruhi!" he yelled. "We'll make sure you escape undetected!" _Better hope Ranma's here already._

"Hello, Kyon," the D said, arriving from the sky. "I see you've kept your end of the bargain."

"Save the monologue for someone who cares," Kyon yelled. "Knowing guys like you, I can only assume that you're not going to keep your end of the bargain."

The D smirked. "Oh, looks like you've seen through my scheme. Of course I'm going to lie. It's what I do. I did the same thing after killing the creator of the Destiny Heroes and raising the young user in the process. Haven't you heard of Darkseid?"

"Seriously," Kyon said, "Darkseid? That's where you got the idea from? I knew that there were parodies involved, but COME ON!!! At least be original!"

"Are you going to duel me, or not?"

"Not like I have any other choice. But seriously, the guy you're working for is about as trusting as GLaDOS from Portal."

"There's a difference between being a full-time villain and an evil mercenary. I'm just in it for the money."

"Greedy AND stupid," Haruhi said. "A dangerous combination to make."

"I'm basically looking at the Duelist version of Boss Hog from the Dukes of Hazzard," Kyon added.

The D growled. "Don't insult my tactics!"

"Sorry, but you know that you're going to die if you lose. And it's not by my hands."

"Oh please. And you say I'm the cheesy one? Let me introduce you to how I duel." With a snap of the fingers, Kyon then found himself with collars. "It's the requirements of the Underground Dueling System. Every time your Life Points decrease, you receive a small shock. The big one's made from losing all of your life points in the duel. I believe your friend fell prey to the same thing he faced in the duel?"

"With the stuff I went through," Kyon said, "I'm not surprised." _Seriously, if I'm shocked with Haruhi watching, I'm almost afraid of what will happen to the world if I die._ With that, Kyon activated his Duel Disk with the D following suit.

"LET'S DUEL!"

(Kyon: 4000.)

(The D: 4000.)

To be continued…

----

(A/n: Five Duels and one Burly Brawl involving four Duelists. One of them is trying to free their fellow Neriman from the Rod's control (as well as a name change), another is an ex-fiancée possessed by the GIR of Fiends who killed Jaden and Kyon's mentor (who's not related to Ryoga, by the way), the third involves a dead best friend who has the Monkey of the Earthbound Gods, the fourth is a grudge match between the Self-Insert and one of Atem's more sadistic opponents, and the fifth is an Underground Duel with a supposed God watching as her Adam is dueling for his life against an assailant whose tactics are similar to Darkseid from the Superman comics. Ranma's preparing for the rescue while the remaining four are facing off against an army of Duel Youmas. Only thing that would make this funnier was if Malik actually called the Self-Insert "Binky Boy" before declaration.

Seriously, I put in a lot of hidden jokes. One of them is basically from an anime I haven't seen before making fun of Aki's resemblance to Kallen from Code Geass and the Avatar. And for the record, I'm a Yusei/Aki fan.

Either way, Jaden's going to be enjoying HIS duel. He wanted revenge for the near-death in Chapter 2 (involving the broken couch), but it looks like he's going to go up in a disadvantage when he pulls out the Evil Heroes. After all, Tragoedia's Special Ability makes him the Fiend version of Buster Blader, only with his own kind.

For the record, it would be easier for Ranma to duel Ukyo (who had her name forcibly changed into Steve), but I had Ryoga duel her in his place. After all, he's the only one with the Umi-Sen-Ken. I just hope he's able to pull off something similar to what Yugi did freeing Joey.

If you don't get the reference Kyon spouted out, one of them is obscure considering that I've only seen the Dukes of Hazzard movie (made by the guys who made Super Troopers) while another stems from Portal. I'm pretty sure that Haruhi got the references through word of mouth. At least, hopefully.

The Avatar's finally revealed as the guy who tried to befriend the group. And I already hinted at Malik's appearance during the Bonus chapter. But in all seriousness, he'll be using his Dragon Deck, and Malik's got an unpleasant surprise, which involves the second (and only) Winged Dragon of Ra card. Atem's going to be PISSED when he finds out about that. And for the record, the only way it escaped detection is if it's called something else, and it involves the Abridged nickname for it (Mega Ultra Chicken). And no, I'm not renaming Obelisk the Tormentor and Slifer the Sky Dragon to Obelisk the Rejected Cloverfield Monster and Slifer the Executive Producer. That would be too obvious (and predictable).

Yusei and Kiryu is basically an obvious match-up, but instead of the Dark Duel Track, I'm putting Kiryu's respective Earthbound God as a design on the floor of the battlefield.

And obviously, there's a difference between a regular duel and an all-out brawl. In a brawl, you're forced to screw the rules in order to survive. Kaiba knew it because he faced off against a dark version of his Blue-Eyes White Dragon card and was forced to bring out the Shining Dragon. Jack also knows it because most of his funding went into the creation of Battle City V2. Atem knows two different Setos, so it's obvious to him (and no, the other one doesn't have green hair. Tan skin, yes, but no green hair).

And what Bakura's really doing is looking for gay people. He's got a Gaydar and willing to use it.

Oh, and here's the Rejected Cloverfield Mon…er, I mean Omakes for this chapter.)

----

Omake 3: Not the typical overpowered self-insert (aka, The Avatar's not so serious).

--

"Now, prepare to feel the wrath of the Shadow Realm!" Malik yelled.

To his surprise, Andrew was laughing.

"You find this funny? You're about to suffer nightmares beyond your comprehension!"

"I find it funny," he said, "because your Shadow Realm PALES in comparison to what I've got!"

Malik looked slightly frightened. "Humor me."

"As a Rider, I have access to a realm STRONGER than the soul-sucking powers of the Shadow Realm. DUEL FIELD: MASS CONFUSION! IT'S MAJIDE TIME!!!"

With that, the shadows faded to reveal what looked like Outer Space.

"What the hell is this?" Malik asked him.

"In Majide time, you're able to screw the rules in multiple formats. All you have to do is have the urge to say 'Are you serious?!!' It's the most lethal Duel Field ever created in all of history!"

That did it. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!" Malik yelled.

"If you don't believe me, ask Seiyaryu." With that, a pink serpentine dragon appeared behind Andrew.

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!"

"He said it," Seiyaryu said. "Looks like he activated the Majide Meteor Shower."

"It basically applies direct damage of 500 Life Points every time you say it during the whole duel. And since you said it twice, well…you get the idea."

As soon as it was said, Malik was hit twice by incoming Majide meteors.

(Malik: 3000.)

"As you can see, saying 'Are you serious' has serious consequences." Unfortunately, it affects even HIM!

(Andrew: 3500.)

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!" Malik yelled. "If you have that kind of power at your disposal, why are we having this duel? You could have saved the girl already!"

That's when the phrases shattered.

"For the record," Andrew said, "I just like to screw with my opponents. Besides, the 'Stronger than the Shadow Realm' thing is basically a glaring SI trait ALONE."

"I fail to see why it's stronger than a simple Shadow Realm game," Malik said. "Who was the idiot that designed this field?"

"I take insult to that, Malik-boy," a familiar voice said.

Malik was surprised to see…PEGASUS?!? "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!" he yelled.

"Depends on your term of serious," another voice said. "Then again, why so serious, Malik?"

Again, surprise is evident as he's staring in the face of Dartz, who's basically dressed up like the Joker. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!"

"Mind if I join the party?" a kid's voice said. "I've been wandering around the database for quite a while."

"ARE YOU SHITTING ME?!!" Malik yelled. "You're supposed to be DEAD because the database is destroyed AND Kaiba had an updated look!"

"We need five people in order to revive the Mega Ultra Chicken," Andrew said, dressed up as a witch doctor. "Now please, read these cards: I am…"

"I am…" all four Villains said (and yes, including Malik because of the second effect of the Majide Field).

"Sofa king…"

"Sofa king…"

"We todd ed."

"We todd ed."

"Now, say it faster." They did, but Andrew interrupted them. "No, not so fast. Loses meaning."

The phrase, when put together, was "I am so [EFF]ing retarded."

"You say funny thing."

"You're just [EFF]ing with me," Malik said. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow your mind into bits right now."

"Because the Mega Ultra Chicken, or rather, the Winged Dragon of Ra is very angry with you right now."

"The what's the what now?" Turning around, he was able to see Ra in place of Pegasus, Dartz, and Noah (who were the sacrifices) and fully loaded. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!! Is the Mega Ultra Chicken the pet name for Ra?"

"Check the card," Andrew said.

Sure enough, Malik looked at the card on the Duel Disk…and it was right there, in print, "Mega Ultra Chicken."

"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS?!!"

Andrew nodded. "And because of the illusionistic sacrifices involved, he'll attack Smackover Arkansas!"

"YOU'RE SHITTING ME, RIGHT?!!"

Sure enough, Ra transformed into Phoenix mode and his impact turned the world into an oddly shaped DRUMSTICK!!! Wait, what now?

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!"

"Dead serious. And because of the attack points involving Pegasus, Dartz, and Noah, you lose Life Points because it was YOUR monster."

"Wait, what?" Malik asked him. "You mean those were MONSTERS based off of actual PEOPLE?!!"

"Ever hear of Kaibaman?"

Toon Prophet:

ATK: 1500.

DEF: 2500.

Orichalcos Puppet:

ATK: 500.

DEF: 3500.

Digital Spirit:

ATK: 1000.

DEF: 2000.

(Malik: 0.)

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!" Malik yelled, taking the brunt of the attack. With that, the body was unconscious as soon as they returned, much to the shock of Jaden.

"What the hell just happened?" he asked Andrew.

"Let's just say that there's a power that was sealed away because of the absurdity and intense disregard for the current rulebook."

"Well, that explains why your opponent's drooling."

Andrew groaned. "This happens every time I activate the Majide! Seriously, if I have to see that every time they experience Majide, I'm going to have to get a mop." He then looked at Jaden. "By the way, how was your duel with Tragoedia."

Jaden groaned. "Let's just say I've got a new fusion, an asset to the Evil Heroes, and a new annoyance and leave it at that. By the way, was that Ra?"

"Not anymore. Normally, I'd take it, but I didn't control it, which makes me not a typical SI. Instead, I'm taking his Fiend Sanctuary."

Jaden groaned. "Wise decision. That display alone made you overpowered. Which reminds me…" Andrew then got a punch to the face. "WHY THE HELL DID YOU KEEP YOUR IDENTITY SECRET FOR THE THREE BATTLE CITY CHAPTERS?!? A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE THINKING THERE WAS ANOTHER CROSSOVER INVOLVED WITH THIS STORY!!! AND SERIOUSLY, USING A BOBOBO TECHNIQUE? HOW ORIGINAL!"

"It's only an omake," Andrew replied. "Lighten up."

----

(And this is why I strayed from the SI concept. Seriously, I only use it to spoof the whole thing, not implement it in the story.

I'm not sure which order to put them in, but I know Kyon's is last. Read and Review…and don't mind the SI concept, because he's not overpowered and I sure as HELL won't put in something like that in a YuGiOh fanfic. If you think I'll go back on my word, I'm going to have to bring in the Mega Ultra Chicken for every four flamers that disagree, binky boy.

Bakura: I knew you'd say it sometime.

Oh shut up, kitty.)


	14. Bonus: WickED Revelations

The Horse and The King.

Bonus Chapter 2: UnexptectED Arrivals. The Three Gajins from Peach Creek.

(A/n: For the record, I stumbled across a writer's block after the old modem died, so don't expect me to bring out any chapters as good as the last twelve…or thirteen, counting the "Nightshroud's Evil Council" one. Deck ideas belong to charizdag, who's the author of "YuGiOh: Team World" and one of the few to do an Alternate Universe with Numbuh 4 as one of the Pharaoh's High Priests.

And I said I would do more crossovers. I never said what in particular. This also takes place during the duel between Jaden and Nabiki.)

----

At a nearby airport, three boys got off their flight. One of them had red hair, green skin, and was excited. The second had a red shirt, a sock on his head, and was intrigued. The final one had blue hair, was short in stature, and was bored out of his skull.

"Well," the short one said, "we're here. I'm just wondering why Jimmy isn't with us right now."

"First off, Eddy," the one with the sock said, "would he even fit on the plane had we went with the sumo scam? Second, we're here because Ed won us a trip to Battle City V2, although why it's in Juuban is beyond me."

Ed, however, was ecstatic. "Monster battle!" he yelled.

"Ed, control yourself," the genius said. "Battle City V2 doesn't start until a week."

"Actually," a mysterious voice interjected, catching the kids' attention, "the time jumped itself to two days from now, so you're going to need to make some last-minute preparations." The owner of the voice was around his late twenties, had a cone head, and a brown jacket with a V2 Duel Disk at hand. "And you must be the winners of Kaiba's Duel Contest. Name's Tristan Taylor, one of Battle City V2's enforcers."

"Nice to meet you, Tristan," the kid with the sock said, bowing down. "My name's Eddward, with two Ds, and these are my friends…"

"Eddy," Eddy said. "And the lump is Ed. We call our intellectual friend Double-D to avoid confusion."

Tristan nodded. 'Curious group,' he thought. "Well, Kaiba sent me to direct you guys towards your hotel. You know how these flights from America to Japan are."

"What creatures of the abyss do you use, Honda?" Ed asked Tristan. That brought a surprise to not only his friends, but also Tristan, who felt a wave of recognition over that name.

"Ed," Edd said, grabbing his friend. "Sorry about that. He can't exactly control himself. Loveable oaf."

"Nah," Tristan said. "It's just been a long time since I was called Honda. And to answer his question, I use a Cyborg Deck. Roboyarou, Robolady, and my favorite, Cyber Commander, are among the few in my ranks. You guys?"

"I'm a Fiend of Dark World user," Ed replied, "Double-D's the Chess Master, and Eddy has a Greed-themed deck."

Eddy groaned. "Great going, lumpy. Why not tell him your rarest card while you're at it?"

"Actually," Edd said, "that one's required, considering the circumstances."

"We'll discuss it on the way to the hotel," Tristan said. "Those theme decks are rare, considering that Archfiends aren't the most popular and greed-theme decks aren't normal."

With that, the trio and the Cyborg User went towards a limosuine with one destination in mind: The KaibaCorp Hotel for far-away Battle City Competitors.

"Did I mention that Kaiba was my favorite duelist?" Eddy asked Tristan.

"Although he may be rich," he muttered, "he doesn't like suck-ups." Eddy groaned. "The reason I'm here is because he sent me, other than the fact that he has a meeting with Mr. Goodshow and someone named Setsuna Meiou. I don't know the finer details myself, but it involves something not seen since the first Battle City."

"You mean the one with the Egyptian God Cards?" Ed asked him.

Tristan was surprised. "Exactly! How did you know?"

"Ed's the one who got us into Duel Monsters," Eddy said. "While he's got monsters that resemble his Evil Tim cards, Sockhead and I use cards that match our personalities."

"Only yours does, Eddy," Edd said. "Mine happens to be related to Chess, which is a game I've trounced you more than one time in."

"Chess is one thing, but Duel Monsters is something else entirely. And if you recall, my Goblin Attack Force wiped out your life points on more than one occasion."

Tristan groaned. "Would you three explain what card you're wagering before Kaiba kills me for ruining his car?"

That made all three of them stop.

"Reshef the Dark Being," Ed replied, simply.

Edd sighed. "Skull Archfiend of Lightning," he said.

Eddy was sighing. "If you must know," he said, taking out a card from his deck, "I happen to be the only one to contain a card used by one of the Dueling Trinity." The card had shown itself to be Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction.

"That's the card your brother gave you before…" Edd started.

"I'm aware of the incident, Sockhead. The Fiend Megacyber isn't enough to bring my ranks up, so I have to do with Gandora."

Tristan was surprised. 'Gandora…I know Yugi used that card once, and Bakura possessed me in order to duel him, but I wasn't aware of any others with that card.' "Well, you guys are in. Just remember to rest up for the next day. Those red-eye flights happen to be killer."

All three Eds agreed with that. However, neither they nor Tristan were aware of the green Duel Runner following them and the masked man riding it.

_I knew the small one looked familiar,_ he thought. _I'm starting to wonder if he's got Evan's skill. Only one way to find out._

Eddy, however, was silent because of the circumstances.

_I know that I'm desecrating your memory, bro,_ he thought, _but it was the only way that I could enter the tournament. I'll try to win it in order to proceed, but I have to know the truth about why you left._

When they got to the Kaibacorp Hotel, the masked man remained unseen, but caught Eddy's eye a couple times.

"Something wrong, Eddy?" Edd asked his friend.

Eddy couldn't help but wonder who that masked man was. "I'll catch up with you guys later," he said. "Make sure to jot down notes in case I miss anything important."

Edd nodded and followed Ed into the building, hoping that he didn't get kicked out already.

Eddy, however, was hoping no one was listening in. "You may have hidden yourself from Lumpy and Sockhead," he said, "but I know you're there."

"Glad to see you're as perceptive as your brother," the masked man said, revealing himself to the younger one.

"How do you know my brother? And why the hell are you dressed like Lelouch, anyways?"

The man gave out a small groan. "For the record, I'm not dressed like Lelouch, per se. As for how I know Evan, young Edward, he and I were teammates until…the Dark Renewal four years ago."

_That's the same time my Brother left home,_ he thought. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you everything on one condition: You'll have to face me in a duel right here and now." With that, the man took out his Duel Disk and activated it. "When it's over, not only will I tell you the incident, but I'll send in a parting gift. Battle City hasn't started yet, so consider yourself lucky that you'll keep Gandora for the next two days."

"Fine by me," Eddy said, taking out his own Duel Disk (V1 with Gold Runes on the side a-la Lord of the Rings) and inserting his deck into the slot.

"LET'S DUEL!" they both yelled.

(Avatar: 4000.)

(Eddy: 4000.)

"I go first," the masked man said. "I summon Spear Dragon, in ATK mode!" With that, what looked like a dragon with a long nose appeared on the masked man's side of the field. "I also place two cards face-down and end my turn."

"My move!" Eddy yelled, then looked at his card. "I place one card face-down, then play a Spell Card known as Graceful Charity, letting me draw three cards and discard two." Eddy then did so. "Like you, I also play two cards face-down, and end my turn."

The masked man drew his card. "Spear Dragon, attack his face-down! Piercing Blow!" As the dragon attacked the face-down card, a small goblin with a spear at hand had surprised it when destroyed. "A Spear Cretin?"

"That's right," Eddy said. "When Spear Cretin is destroyed, the both of us can summon a Monster from the Graveyard when the flip effect is activated. And the Monster I discarded I place face-down." Eddy remained true to his word as a face-down monster appeared. "And you just activated my trap: Spirit Shield!" Sure enough, a darker version of Mirror Force had shown its ugly head. "Because of Graceful Charity's effect, another Fiend-type monster was sacrificed in order to negate your Spear Dragon's second effect, and I can only use it once considering that it was the only other Fiend that was in the Graveyard."

The Avatar was surprised, then chuckled. "That was a good one," he said. "Your brother used the same strategy on his opponents, too, but luck won't last long for you because I still have my face-downs. I end my turn by putting Spear Dragon in DEF mode." With that, the Dragon bowed his head.

"Before I start, I activate my second trap, Solemn Wishes." Said Trap had revealed itself. "During every Draw Phase this card is activated, I gain 500 Life Points." He then drew his card.

(Eddy: 4500.)

"I also summon Giant Orc, in ATK mode and place one card face-down." With that, Giant Orc was summoned next to the face-down monster and another face-down directly behind it. "Giant Orc, attack his Spear Dragon! PRIDE OF THE HORDE!" The Orc growled and brought his club down towards the Dragon…

"Activate Trap!" the man yelled. "Dragon Cry!" With that, the attack was stopped in place. "Now your Orc can't handle the sound of my dragon."

Eddy, however, was smirking. "You know what they say: Don't fear the reaper." The Avatar was confused. "The monster placed face-down isn't an ordinary monster. Come forth, Reaper of the Cards!" That made him flinch. "Because of the Reaper's special ability, your Dragon Cry was wasted."

That said, the Reaper had swooped in and destroyed the Dragon Cry card, making the Giant Orc resume his attack.

"And since my Orc's already attacked, he goes into Defense mode for the remainder of the turn." The Orc did so. "But not before revealing his Union Monster, the Second Goblin." The face-down card turned out to be a Union Monster, and it latched itself onto the Giant Orc. "So, what do you think? A Grim Reaper, an orc, and a Goblin. Impressive, isn't it?"

"Same tactic your brother used," he replied, making Eddy surprised. "However, I can see that you're going to want to hear the story, so you're trying to build up for something. No matter. I can counteract that move." The Avatar then drew his card, making both he and Eddy flinch. "And I start by summoning Magna Drago, in ATK mode!" With that, a red dragon had arrived and growled.

"Magna Drago?" he asked him. "I know he has enough to overcome my Reaper, but my Orc…not so much."

"Well, he's not here to attack, but to serve a bigger purpose." That made the man confused, along with the Orc, Reaper, and Goblin. "To activate the Tuning Process, I tribute Magna Draco and the Tri-Horned Dragon in my hand in order to bring out my Trident Dragion!" With that, Magna Draco went through the eight tuning loops (like Junk Warrior) and transformed into a three-headed Dragon, much to his surprise. "Because of his Special Ability, I can destroy two cards on the field that I control, but I'll activate my face-down trap, Dragon's Rage. Now, my Trident Dragion! Attack his Giant Orc! PYRO STREAM OF DESTRUCTION!"

"Second Goblin," Eddy yelled. "Take the hit!" Second Goblin, sensing the distress, jumped off of Giant Orc and destroyed itself, making Eddy lose life points.

(Eddy: 1500.)

That brought a bit of confusion. "Why did you let Second Goblin take the hit for Giant Orc?" he asked him. "Dragon's Rage would have finished you off quicker."

"Because the reason I keep Giant Orc in my deck is because he reminds me of someone I'm friends with," he said, panting. "Although slow, he's part of the reason why I'm not mad today."

The Avatar saw a bit of Evan in Eddy, and smirked. "I place one card face-down and end my turn," he said, "but you can't exactly face off against a dragon of Trident Dragon's caliber. It's an organic Cyber End Dragon."

"My move," Eddy said, "and my Solemn Wishes trap activates."

(Eddy: 2000.)

Eddy then looked at his hand. _Looks like the outfit wasn't for show. However, I have to find a way to bypass his Trident Dragion or else I'm dead next turn!_ He then noticed something calling him in his deck. _Wait a minute, I remember what my brother would do in this situation! I just need to find the right card._

"I play Avatar of the Pot, in DEF mode!" With that, a being with the head of the Pot of Greed had appeared between Giant Orc and the Reaper of Cards. "I also play Pot of Greed to let me draw two cards, but with the effect of both the Avatar and Solemn Wishes, I can draw three cards and gain 1500 Life Points in the process."

(Eddy: 3500.)

The Avatar was scoffing. "You've wasted your turn, summoning the Avatar of the Pot. Why take the coward's way out?"

_You'll find out later,_ Eddy thought. "Nothing. Just that a coward can bring out reinforcements when needed. I'll place a card face-down as well and end my turn."

The Avatar drew his card and smirked. "Looks like I won't even need my Trident Dragion's second effect to defeat you," he said. "Trident Dragion, attack! PYRO STREAM OF DESTRUCTION!"

Eddy then braced himself for impact as the blast drew closer.

"It's over!" However, within the blast radius, something strange caught his eye. "What?!?"

Eddy smirked as the fuzzball had disappeared from his hand. "Like I said," he retorted, "even a coward can call for help, and the draw wasn't a waste. In order to make sure that I stay in the duel, I had to discard my Kuriboh in order to stay in the game."

The Avatar smirked. "That was diverting from Evan's style," he said. "He never had a Kuriboh in his deck."

"Actually, Kuriboh was from my own deck. This deck is a mix of my own and my Brother's in order to make sure that his Goblin Army has allies from another plane."

"Well, since I was sure I'd thought I win, I'll activate my face-down, Dragon's Treasure, to increase my Dragon's attack by 500."

(Trident Dragion:

ATK: 3500.)

"Your move, but you'd better think twice before pulling a stunt like THAT again."

Eddy drew his card. "My Solemn Wishes activates its effect again."

(Eddy: 4000.)

"I then sacrifice my Avatar, my Orc, and my Reaper in order to summon a monster that's stronger than your Dragion." With that, all three were sacrificed in a bright light. "For his return, meet my monster, the Wicked Dreadroot!"

With that, a darker version of Obelisk the Tormentor had appeared alongside Eddy, much to the Avatar's surprise.

"Huh," he said. "Never thought you'd bring that out. Dare I ask how you're going to finish me off?"

"By using his special ability to halve your Dragion's ATK and DEF points." Dreadroot then yelled loud enough to make Trident Dragion flinch.

(Trident Dragion:

ATK: 1750.

DEF: 1400.)

"Wicked Dreadroot, attack his Trident Dragion! REVERSAL TORMENT!" Dreadroot then punched the three-headed dragon, destroying it.

(Avatar: 250.)

"I also place another face-down and end my turn," Eddy said. "Your move."

The Avatar smirked as he drew his next card. "I'm impressed. You managed to get me under 2000 Life Points."

"Yeah, well, I've had a good teacher. Wicked Dreadroot is only one of the three Wicked Gods that I wield."

"It takes one of your blood to fully control them." Eddy was surprised. "But since you aren't aware of what happened that brought you and your friends to the Juuban District, you might as well listen after the duel is over." With that, his head was back in the game. "I now play Heart of the Underdog, which lets me draw another card when I draw a Normal Monster." With that, the Magic Card appeared next to Dragon's Rage. "I also summon Lord of D, which nullifies any effect you can use on my Dragons." With that, the spellcaster with the dragon's skull had appeared in front of the masked man. "And I also play the Flute of Summoning Dragon to Special Summon two Dragons without tributing them, and they are my long-time partner Seiyaryu and the Dragonic Knight!"

With that, a pink serpentine dragon appeared next to the Lord of D. while a humanoid dragon had kneeled itself.

"I also play my own Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards." He then looked at his hand. "Make that three because of Heart of the Underdog's effect." Another card was drawn.

"Sounds like this Underdog guy's been through some tough spots," Eddy said.

The Avatar smirked in reply. "Well, he IS compared to one of the Duelist Trinity, because whenever he goes through a tough spot, he always pulls through. But enough of that, I play Polymerization in order to fuse the Divine Dragon Ragnarok in my hand with Lord of D in order to summon King Dragun!" With that, the serpentine dragon and Lord of D turned into a naga-like creature. "However, since King Dragun's a fusion, I can't attack this turn…normally."

Eddy flinched. _That's not good._

"The third card I've drawn is a Spell Card known as Brave Attack, which lets King Dragun attack your Wicked Dreadroot. Now, let's go, Dragun! DIVINE RETRIBUTION!" King Dragun attacked the Wicked Dreadroot, destroying it. "And due to Dragon Rage's effect, Dragun's 4500 ATK points cut through your life points."

"Not while I activate this! Hate Buster!" Eddy activated his trap card. "Because of this, we both receive equal damage when one of my Fiend monsters are attacked, making this duel a draw!"

(Avatar: 0.)

(Eddy: 0.)

Both duelists were out of breath as the holograms disappeared.

"Hate Buster," the masked man muttered. "Well, I haven't had a duel that ended in a tie since…ever. I guess I should explain how I know your brother."

"That's what I've been dueling for," he said.

The Avatar shook his head. "No, I said 'When the duel is over.' Not when you win. I was going to tell you, anyways, since you have the right to know."

"Then tell me. What happened to Evan?"

"Remember when I mentioned the Dark Renewal?" Eddy nodded. "Well, sadly…he was one of the three sacrifices that were needed to bring back someone."

"You mean my brother's…"

"Not dead." That was a surprise. "In a coma, as well as two of my other comrades that tried to stop the ritual from happening. I am the only one who was spared by the man who sent their souls to the Shadow Realm."

"But what does this have to do with me?" Eddy asked him. "I'm not that great a duelist, although Lumpy, Sockhead, and I are the best in our neighborhood, and I doubt I can go to the same length my brother did."

"That's why you're here. In order to defeat the enemy, you'll have to side with a coming force that will appear during this tournament. I fear that someone who knows you will try to join forces with whatever darkness is out there. By the way, I guess you've earned a prize." The masked man then gave Eddy a card known as Gorz, the Emissary of Darkness. "Despite what you may think, even an empty field can be filled with hazards. This card will lure your opponents into a trap, thinking you're a goner when this card is in your hand, defending your life points. Now, battle well, for the worst is yet to come."

Before Eddy could respond, he then noticed a chuckling noise from the card.

_What the…_he thought. _I guess the man was full of riddles, although I think this card and I would share a bond similar to my friends' and partners. Might as well use it for whatever's going on._ He then put the card in his deck and joined his two friends.

"Where have you been?" Ed asked him, sternly.

"Bathroom," Eddy replied. "Apparently, airline food doesn't go well with arrival."

"I saw the duel, Eddy," Edd said. "What were you thinking, using Wicked Dreadroot against him? He could have been someone wanting to take those cards!"

"Let's just say that this tournament's going to be like when Ed donned the Monster Costume, only ten times more concentrated and not as brainless. The guy happened to know my brother, too, and apparently I felt like I had to duel him."

"Your brother? That would be unusual, considering that his last destination was unknown…"

Eddy groaned. "Let's just get some rest," he said. "We're going to need it." Ed was already sleeping on the couch. "That was quick."

Edd was concerned for his friend. _I guess that duel must have opened his eyes,_ he thought. Noticing Eddy murmuring about scamming and Jawbrakers, he then thought, _Then again…_

The trio from America doesn't realize the mess they're getting into happens to be bigger than anything they've cooked. Even bigger than the Edco scam they did.

To be continued…

----

(Deck Lists:

Eddy's Wicked Vanity Deck (so far):

Effect Monsters:

Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction (Prize Card);

Gorz, the Emissary of Darkness (given by Avatar);

Giant Orc;

Second Goblin;

Avatar of the Pot;

Reaper of the Cards;

Kuriboh;

The Wicked Dreadroot;

The Wicked Avatar; and

The Wicked Eraser.

Spell Card:

Pot of Greed.

Trap Cards:

Solemn Wishes;

Spirit Shield (Anime only card); and

Hate Blaster.

The Avatar's/Andrew's Dragun's Army Deck (accumulated from other stories, too);

Normal Monsters:

Divine Dragon Ragnarok;

Seiyaryu;

One-Eyed Shield Dragon;

Tri-Horned Dragon;

Red-Eyes Black Dragon x 2;

Dark Magician;

Dark Blade;

Summoned Skull;

Kumori Dragon;

Baby Dragon;

Hunter Dragon;

Luster Dragon;

Luster Dragon 2;

Meteor Dragon;

Warrior Dai Grepher.

Effect Monsters:

Dreamsprite;

Dark Magician Girl;

Chaos Necromancer;

Red-Eyes Black Metal Dragon;

Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon;

Magna Drago;

Buster Blader;

Kuriboh;

Winged Kuriboh;

Time Wizard;

Felgrand Dragon;

Frost and Flame Dragon;

Dragon Ice;

Blizzard Dragon;

Montage Dragon;

White-Horned Dragon;

Spirit Ryu;

Spear Dragon;

Red-Eyes Black Chick x 2;

Tyrant Dragon;

Dragon Piper x 3;

Debris Dragon;

Troop Dragon x 3;

Decoy Dragon x 2;

Des Voltsgaph;

Draconic Knight;

Infernal Dragon;

Pitch-Dark Dragon;

Kiryu;

Vangaurd of the Dragon;

Phantom Dragon;

Tiger Dragon; and

Victory Dragon (only used as a last resort).

Fusion Monsters:

Black Skull Dragon;

Meteor Black Dragon;

Dark Blade the Dragon Knight;

King Dragun;

Ryu Senshi;

Dark Paladin;

Thousand Dragon; and

Five-Headed Dragon (rarely used).

Synchro Monster:

Trident Dragion.

Spell Cards:

The Shallow Grave;

Pot of Greed;

Dragon's Gunfire;

Heart of the Underdog;

Dragon's Treasure;

Polymerization x 2;

Fusion Weapon;

Card Destruction;

Sword of Dark Rites;

Card of Sanctity;

Graceful Charity;

Soul Release;

Cost Down;

Heavy Storm;

Wingbeat of Giant Dragon;

Unity;

Buster Rancher;

Amulet of Ambition.

Trap Cards:

Hallowed Life Barrier;

Dragon's Rage;

Destruction Jammer;

Magic Arm Shield.

A/n: This more or less is character development for the Avatar/Andrew here. Apparently, Eddy's Brother happens to be one of his partners…and Eddy has the Wicked Gods, which are the darker counterparts to the Egyptian God Cards…could he be related to Zorc or Atem? Heck, is he the reincarnation of Atem's Season Zero personality? My money's on the latter, but only one of Eddy's blood can control them…all three of them, actually.

Other than that, the Wicked Gods have a Fusion Form in THIS story, much like Atem having Hektols and Jaden with Armatiel. And yes, Eddy has Kuriboh. It saved his ass in more than one duel, especially against the Kanker Sisters. It's also linked to the idea that all three Eds are connected to the Gods (Ed is Slifer, Double-D is Obelisk, and Eddy is Ra) somehow as Riders, which I'm STILL working on.

Other than that, enjoy this omake.)

----

Omake 3: One Weapon Not Worth Taking (minor crossover).

--

The duel between the Avatar and Eddy ended in a draw. Before the Avatar could leave, however…

"Wait!" Eddy yelled. "What kind of adventures did you and Evan have?"

The Avatar stopped. He hadn't told a story in a while, and the younger brother of one of his old comrades was asking for one.

"That's classified information," he replied. "But I can give a word of advice: If a sacred sword asks you to do tasks that are so mundane you can't think straight, it's not worth taking."

That brought a confused look to the money-grubbing Ed. "Say what? Sacred Sword? You mean like Excalibur or something?"

The man behind the mask was lucky that he was wearing one, because the look on his face was genuine disgust and embarrassment right now. "Yes, Excalibur. Apparently, Arthur had to be either extremely obedient or completely stupid. Heck, that's how Mordred was born."

Eddy got the picture, and had made THAT face as well. "That explains Ed's pet."

The Avatar grimaced even further. "You mean the sleepwalking idiot devouring all the food in a five-block radius of the city district?"

That brought a little surprise to the Ed, making him realize something: "We're screwed."

Yeah, because the food supply came from the Temporary Kaibacorp Headquarters, and Ed, defying all physics and logic, had just taken Seto Kaiba's refrigerator.

Excalibur and Double-D would not be amused. Moreover, Kaiba was going to be pissed.

----

(A/n: Read and Review. And yes, the Excalibur the Avatar was talking about is the one from Soul Eater. Which version would make even the stotic Seto Kaiba and Atem's Season Zero characters make that face?)


End file.
